An exploration of the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game
World of Warcraft as a tool for facilitating incidental vocabulary
acquisition
Author: Anamaria Kinga Maior
University of Glasgow
British Council ELT Master’s Dissertation Awards: Commendation
Title Page
An exploration of the Massively Multiplayer Online
Role-Playing Game World of Warcraft as a tool
for facilitating incidental vocabulary acquisition
by
Anamaria Kinga Maior
0205778
A dissertation submitted in part requirement for the degree of
MEd TESOL
School of Education
Word Count: 15,143
August, 2016.
Acknowledgements
I would like to thank my supervisor, Dr. Lavinia Hirsu, for her wonderful support and
kindness throughout this project. I am also grateful to my partner, Iskren Ivanov, for his
patience in listening to endless speculations on improving my work. Finally, I am much
obliged to my tutors at Glasgow University for their effort and assistance.
ii
Abstract
This case study explores the extent to which incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) can
occur in the context of the MMORPG World of Warcraft through the reading of quest texts
and interaction with the game environment. Schmidt’s (1990) Noticing Hypothesis and
Nation’s (2007) Four Strands, in combination with previous studies on multimodal
environments, form the theoretical foundation of this project. Mixed methods were used to
collect data through two types of research instruments: vocabulary pre- and post-tests
designed by the researcher for the purpose of this study along with one-to-one semistructured interviews. Data collection took place in 4 stages: vocabulary pre-test, game-play,
vocabulary post-test and one-to-one semi-structured interviews over Skype. The participants
were three second language learners of English (students at Glasgow University), who all
expressed an interest in playing computer games. The findings suggest that initial receptive
knowledge of new vocabulary items from playing the MMORPG World of Warcraft can occur
incidentally in a relatively brief period of time (2-4 hours). Acquisition, albeit fragile, seems to
be greatly facilitated by a combination of word frequency exposure, especially at 1-4 and
15+ occurrences, where the average improvement was 40% and 43% respectively.
Furthermore, visual representations of creatures and locations seen in-game through the
process of questing (completing in-game assignments) can also assist incidental vocabulary
acquisition (IVA). One implication of the current study is that second language learners of
English could be actively encouraged to play an MMORPG of their own choosing, as
successful in-game vocabulary acquisition might encourage and assist further development
of their vocabulary. Concurrently, the newly learnt vocabulary is transferable from the virtual
environment to real life and as a result, it could be strengthened through practice. Finally, the
study proposes further research be undertaken in the realm of online games to measure the
amount of both receptive and productive knowledge of incidental vocabulary acquired from
game-play.
iii
Table of Contents
Title Page............................................................................................................................... i
Acknowledgements ................................................................................................................ii
Abstract................................................................................................................................. iii
Table of Contents..................................................................................................................iv
List of Figures and Tables .....................................................................................................vi
Abbreviations ....................................................................................................................... vii
1.0 Introduction ..................................................................................................................... 1
1.1 Background and context of the study ........................................................................... 1
1.2 The purpose of the study ............................................................................................. 2
1.3 Outline ......................................................................................................................... 3
2.0 Literature Review ............................................................................................................ 4
2.1 Vocabulary acquisition: definition ................................................................................. 4
2.2 Optimal conditions for vocabulary acquisition: Schmidt’s Noticing Hypothesis and
Nation’s Four Strands ........................................................................................................ 4
2.2.1 Vocabulary acquisition and Schmidt’s Noticing Hypothesis ................................... 4
2.2.2 Vocabulary acquisition and Nation’s Four Strands ................................................ 5
2.3 Incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): definition ........................................................ 7
2.3.1 Incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) through extensive reading ........................ 8
2.3.2 Testing incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): the controversy explained ......... 11
2.4 Vocabulary acquisition through multimodal environments .......................................... 13
2.5 Context for incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): World of Warcraft (WoW) ........... 14
2.5.1 World of Warcraft (WoW) .................................................................................... 14
2.5.2 MMORPGs and World of Warcraft as informal SLA learning environments ......... 16
2.5.3 The MMORPG World of Warcraft as an interactive multimodal learning
environment with rich meaning-focused input .............................................................. 18
2.6 Research questions ................................................................................................... 21
3.0 Methodology ................................................................................................................. 21
3.1 Research paradigm ................................................................................................... 21
3.2 Mixed methodology, research instruments and data analysis .................................... 22
3.3 The design of research instruments and data collection ............................................ 23
3.4 Vocabulary tests: exercises I-IV.; reliability, validity and practicality of tests; quest
sample............................................................................................................................. 25
3.4.1 Vocabulary tests: exercises I.-IV. ........................................................................ 25
iv
3.4.2 Reliability, validity and practicality of vocabulary tests ......................................... 27
3.4.3 Quest sample from World of Warcraft ................................................................. 28
3.5 Semi-structured interviews ........................................................................................ 30
3.6 Participants................................................................................................................ 30
3.7 Confidentiality and anonymity .................................................................................... 31
3.8 Potential risks ............................................................................................................ 31
4.0 Findings ........................................................................................................................ 32
4.1 Research question 1: To what extent does the number of in-game word exposure
frequency in quest texts facilitate the comprehension of incidental vocabulary? .............. 32
4.2 Research question 2: To what extent does the interaction with the game environment
through visual representations of creatures and locations assist with the comprehension of
incidental vocabulary from game-play?............................................................................ 35
4.3 Research question 3: To what extent does the interaction with quest texts through ingame actions facilitate the comprehension of incidental vocabulary? .............................. 38
4.4 Findings: final totals from vocabulary tests ................................................................ 43
5.0 Conclusion .................................................................................................................... 43
5.1 Limitations of the study .............................................................................................. 43
5.2 Implications and suggestions for future research ....................................................... 44
6.0 Bibliography .................................................................................................................. 46
7.0 Appendices ................................................................................................................... 51
7.1 Ethics application: approval and amendments ........................................................... 51
7.2 Call for Participants: Pamphlet (see Request for Amendments above) ...................... 55
7.3 Consent form ............................................................................................................. 56
7.4 Participant Guidelines ................................................................................................ 57
7.5 Vocabulary tests ........................................................................................................ 58
7.5.1 Vocabulary pre-test ............................................................................................. 58
7.5.2 Vocabulary post-test ........................................................................................... 61
7.6 Interview .................................................................................................................... 65
7.6.1 Interview questions ............................................................................................. 66
7.6.2 Sample interview: Kimkimkim (15.05 minutes) .................................................... 66
v
List of Figures and Tables
Disclaimer: all screenshots used in this study were taken by the researcher in-game (World
of Warcraft) and were or will be used purely for educational purposes.
Figures and their specification
Figure 1. Walking with hunter pet in Elwynn Forest on a sunny day
Figure 2. A level 1 versus a level 100 character
Figure 3. Accepting a quest from Guard Thomas at East Elwynn Bridge
Figure 4. Protect the Frontier! – quest text from Guard Thomas at East Elwynn
Bridge
Figure 5. Examples from Exercises I. and II.
Figure 6. Examples from Exercises III. and IV. of the vocabulary pre- and posttests
Figure 7. The objectives of the quest Protect the Frontier! – quest text from
Guard Thomas at East Elwynn Bridge
Figure 8. Meeting prowlers and young forest bears in Elwynn Forest
Figure 9. 5/8 Prowler or Forest Wolf slain, a message to notify the quest
advancement
Tables and their specification
Table 1. Data collection: sequence, stages, duration and research site
Table 2. The 37 vocabulary items listed according to word exposure frequency
Table 3. Unknown and acquired vocabulary items according to word exposure
frequency ranges
Table 4. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise I.
Table 5. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise II.
Table 6. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise III.
Table 7. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise IV.
Table 8. Individual improvement of visually and non-visually represented
vocabulary items
Table 9. Final total results from pre- and post-tests of all participants
Page
nr.
15
16
19
20
26
27
28
29
29
Page
nr.
24
25
33
36
37
39
40
42
43
vi
Abbreviations
CALL: Computer Assisted Language Learning
IVA: incidental vocabulary acquisition
L1: first language, known as mother tongue or native language
L2: second language, usually learnt after and in addition to L1
MMORPG: massively multiplayer online role‐playing game
MyEVA: My English Vocabulary Assistant, an integrated vocabulary-learning system
developed in Taiwan
Naturalistic CALL: computer assisted language learning in online informal learning contexts
NPC: a non‐playing character in a digital game that is controlled by the computer program
PvE: Player versus Environment or MMORPG gameplay where players play against
characters or things controlled by the computer program
PvP: Player versus Player or MMORPG gameplay where players compete against other
players in real‐time through combat or duelling
RPG: Role-Playing Game or MMORPG gameplay where players take on and play out a
specific role in a fantasy world
RPPvP: role-playing PvP
SLA: second language acquisition
SVST: Standardised Vocabulary Size Test, Nation (2008)
WoW: World of Warcraft® - one of the most popular subscription‐based MMORPGs with
approximately 5.5 million subscribers as of November 2015.
vii
1.0 Introduction
1.1 Background and context of the study
For the past two decades, interactive media (e.g. video and online games) have
been rapidly expanding in contrast with passive media – TV and radio (Mawer and
Stanley, 2011). Amongst them, online games, specifically MMORPGs (massively multiplayer online role-playing games) are currently one of the most popular forms of
entertainment, especially among “the video-game generation” (Lee and Hoadley, 2007)
or “Digital Natives” (Prensky, 2001), who grew up with the use of Internet
communication tools. However, the player-base of online games extends beyond the
former group and encompasses people of all ages (Yee, 2009; Nardi, 2010; Cornillie et
al., 2012:245). Furthermore, some players can spend up to 25 hours per week on
average inside the game (or games) of their choice (Williams et al., 2008:1002).
MMORPGs are graphical 2- or 3-D real-time digital strategy games, highly
immersive and interactive, globally connected virtual environments (Rankin et al., 2006;
Kongmee et al., 2011; Mawer and Stanley, 2011; Sylven and Sundqvist, 2012), where
players control their personalised avatar (in-game character) continuously through a
camera, keyboard and mouse, using hand-eye coordination in order to move through
and interact with the game environment (Peterson, 2010; Whippey, 2011). Additionally,
MMORPGs are rich semiotic narrative environments that include game-generated texts
(e.g. quests, combat texts, descriptions of in-game abilities called tooltips), as well as
player-to-player and player-to-environment interactions that involve continuous critical
thinking and problem-solving skills during game time (Steinkuehler, 2004; Dickey,
2007; Nardi, 2010; Chik, 2011; Rama et al., 2012; Coxhead and Bytheway, 2015). For
example, these skills may involve defeating potent enemies (e.g. other players and
NPCs: non-player characters), trading virtual items for in-game currency, exploring the
game environment through walking, flying, swimming, and constantly improving the
players’ avatars with better equipment (gear), spells and abilities.
Since there is a plethora of MMORPGs available on the market, they were
narrowed down to one specific game. After careful consideration, World of Warcraft®
(or WoW, by Blizzard Entertainment, Inc.) was chosen as the context of the current
study due to the following reasons: 1. it offers large amounts of game-generated text
input (16,281 quests from level 1 to 100 as of December 2015); 2. all quest texts can
be found in online databases on supporting websites, such as
www.wow.gamepedia.com; 3. the game is free to play from levels 1-20, which will
1
cover the scope of the current research study; 4. the researcher’s own students shared
informal reports of vocabulary learning from playing WoW and 5. the researcher herself
has extensive experience of playing the game and is familiar with it.
Even though MMORPGs – and World of Warcraft - are designed for entertainment,
not educational purposes, they have attracted significant attention from researchers in
the field of SLA and Naturalistic CALL (Steinkuehler, 2004; Rankin et al., 2006;
Peterson, 2010, 2012). Since the latter is defined as learning a second or foreign
language in online informal learning contexts, MMORPGs are an appropriate example
for it (Chik, 2013:835). The main reason for this is that engaging in these games tends
to compel the players to use English in order to be able to enjoy and advance their
gaming experience (Sylven and Sundqvist, 2012) due to English being the “de facto
gaming language” of these “globalised game-worlds” (Chik, 2013:836). Therefore, a
large number of studies conducted on MMORPGs cover second language learning
through social interaction and communication with other players (Steinkuehler, 2004;
Peterson, 2010, 2012; Ryu, 2013), as well as intrinsic motivation (Dickey, 2007; Sykes
and Reinhardt, 2013). Some studies cover the complexity of language used in online
games in detail (Thorne et al., 2012) and very few have probed into the language
strategies learners have adopted during game-play (Bytheway, 2015).
1.2 The purpose of the study
As there is currently limited systematic research conducted in the field of incidental
vocabulary acquisition (IVA) in the context of online games for second language
learners of English, this study proposes to combine digital gaming and vocabulary
acquisition through extensive reading by using Schmidt’s Noticing Hypothesis (1990,
2010) and Nation’s (2007) theory of Four Strands. The study will focus on Nation’s first
strand in particular: meaning-focused input through reading (see 2.2.2).
The term incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) is mostly applied to tasks, such as
reading and listening, undertaken with the purpose of personal understanding and
enjoyment (Schmidt, 2010). It is essential to note here that IVA is not planned, nor
controlled by learners: rather, it is “the effortless acquisition of lexis” (Dörnyei,
2009:169). The current study’s purpose is to measure whether incidental vocabulary
acquisition (IVA) can be facilitated while playing the MMORPG World of Warcraft in the
span of approximately 2-4 hours.
Furthermore, most researchers in the field of vocabulary acquisition agree that the
frequency of occurrences of new vocabulary items can greatly influence their
successful acquisition by learners (Schmitt and McCarthy, 1997; Pigada and Schmitt,
2006). Additionally, Gee (2007) argues that in-game images and actions can assist
2
players’ vocabulary acquisition the same way “traditional” learners associate words
with images or actions. Therefore, the current study will also take into consideration the
following significant aspects: word exposure frequency, visual representations and
actions in-game, specifically in quest texts (see research questions in 2.6).
1.3 Outline
The first chapter of the study, Literature Review (2.0), will define and describe the
optimal conditions necessary for successful vocabulary acquisition, including Schmidt’s
(1990) Noticing Hypothesis and Nation’s (2007) Four Strands theories. Then, it will
cover how incidental vocabulary acquisition (henceforth referred to as IVA) occurs and
offer a critical analysis of previous studies related to IVA. Then, as a necessary step,
the controversy regarding IVA testing will be explained. Next, multimodal environments
will be covered briefly as they pertain closely to the context of the study: the MMORPG
World of Warcraft. The subsequent sub-chapters will provide more details regarding
the game itself. Finally, the research questions will be presented.
The second chapter of the study, Methodology (3.0), will cover the research
paradigm, methods and research instruments utilised, including the vocabulary preand post-tests designed by the researcher. Reliability, validity and practicality of the
tests will also be described. Furthermore, the one-to-one semi-structured interviews,
the participants, the ethical process, confidentiality and anonymity as well as potential
risks will be explicated. The third chapter of the study, Findings (4.0), will discuss and
compare the data in relation to previous research studies while answering the
proposed research questions. Finally, the Conclusion (5.0) will outline the limitations
and implications of the study along with suggestions for future research.
3
2.0 Literature Review
2.1 Vocabulary acquisition: definition
Vocabulary acquisition is a highly complex process that involves different aspects
of knowledge. The most comprehensive specification of vocabulary acquisition to date
is the one set by Nation (2001:27), which lists both aspects of receptive and productive
vocabulary knowledge based on three elements: “1. form (sound, spelling, word
structure), 2. meaning (associations, referents, the concept expressed) and 3. use
(word patterns, collocations, constraints on word usage)”. Most researchers agree that
the most essential lexical aspect needed for vocabulary acquisition is the formmeaning link: this may be adequate to allow recognition of a word (Schmitt, 2010:15).
As the acquisition of vocabulary is an incremental process “both in terms of acquiring
an adequate vocabulary size and in terms of mastering individual lexical items”, the
form-meaning link is probably the most appropriate aspect of knowledge to be
measured at the beginning of the incremental learning process (Schmitt, 2010:16-19).
However, for practical reasons, only one of the word knowledge aspects – meaning –
will be measured in the present study. Therefore, when referring to vocabulary
acquisition hereafter in this project, it should be interpreted as comprehension of
meaning. Additionally, vocabulary acquisition requires certain optimal conditions for
successful learning to occur, which will be discussed next.
2.2 Optimal conditions for vocabulary acquisition: Schmidt’s
Noticing Hypothesis and Nation’s Four Strands
Prior to discussing the optimal conditions that facilitate vocabulary acquisition, it
has to be noted that these apply to both intentional and incidental learning in SLA.
2.2.1 Vocabulary acquisition and Schmidt’s Noticing Hypothesis
According to Schmidt’s (1990) Noticing Hypothesis, the learner’s “consciousness”
in use is needed to facilitate both intentional and incidental learning. He distinguishes
“consciousness as intentionality”, which involves a learner’s deliberate, goal-directed
decision to learn (Schmidt, 2010:722) and “consciousness as non-intentionality” or
“incidental learning”, which means the involuntary process of “picking up” (or incidental
learning of) a language through exposure, e.g. reading, listening, speaking and writing
tasks (Ellis, 2002:55; Rott, 2012). Schmidt (1990, cited in Skehan, 1998:48) further
argues that noticing is a necessary, but insufficient condition for effective learning. In
4
other words, learners will notice input based on a combination of external factors: the
complexity of input, the context, instructional treatment, task characteristics, exposure
to language - and internal factors: the learners’ aptitude, motivation, current language
level, unique experience of language exposure, learning styles and strategies
(Schmidt, 2010:730-733). The input that the learner notices, either intentionally or
incidentally, will then become intake and subsequently, L2 knowledge (Ellis, 2002:56).
However, it is crucial to specify that only the vocabulary that is considered important
and necessary, specifically for comprehension of meaning, will be noticed and
processed by the learner – it is contingent on their personal choice (Kweon and Kim,
2008; Zhu, 2015:970). Nevertheless, word exposure frequency can aid this process,
which is the first of six determinants that influence noticing, as specified by Schmidt
(1990):
1. Frequency of form (or word exposure frequency) – the more often a particular
form (or word) is encountered, the more likely it is to be noticed by the learner
2. Perceptual salience of form – the more a particular form (or word) stands out
from the others, the more likely it is to be noticed
3. Instruction – which can help the learner notice and analyse forms (or words)
previously incomprehensible
4. Time and individual differences in processing ability – these are problematic as
every learner is different
5. Readiness to notice – a learner’s internal structures predispose them for what
they are ready to learn
6. Task demands – which relate to what is expected of the learner as a result of
an activity (Schmidt, 1990, cited in Skehan, 1998:48-53).
In the current study, due to time limitations, there were no appropriate measuring
instruments designed for perceptual salience of form or readiness to notice, and
instruction may have altered the incidental nature of learning this project aims to
examine. Therefore, the main focus will be on word exposure frequency, while taking
into consideration time and task demands as facilitators of IVA. They will be addressed
in more detail in the Methodology chapter of this project (see sections 3.3 and 3.4).
2.2.2 Vocabulary acquisition and Nation’s Four Strands
There is another set of optimal conditions needed for SLA to occur. Nation
(2007:2) proposes a framework of Four Strands or “continuous sets of learning
conditions” to assist SLA: 1. meaning-focused input, 2. language-focused learning,
3. meaning-focused output and 4. fluency (the order rearranged by the researcher).
Nation (2007) suggests that all four strands should be implemented equally in order to
maintain a balanced language course – they constitute necessary and sufficient
5
conditions for all types of SLA to occur (ibid.). However, as will be demonstrated later
(see sections 2.4 and 2.5), these four strands do not apply only to classroom settings
and teacher controlled activities. They also permeate informal language settings, be it
in everyday real life situations or, increasingly, in online or virtual environments (Chik,
2013; Coxhead and Bytheway, 2015). The present study will focus on the latter in the
form of an online computer game, specifically the MMORPG (massively multiplayer
role-playing game) World of Warcraft.
The first strand (meaning-focused input) usually involves receptive language
learning through reading and listening, thus providing a platform to facilitate incidental
learning. Nation (2007:3) enumerates typical activities related to this strand as
“extensive reading, shared reading, listening to stories, watching TV or films, and being
a listener in a conversation”. It is important to note here that some of the conditions
needed for this strand are rich quantities of input with sufficient and spaced repetition of
vocabulary items, as well as learners’ interest to understand this input (Nation, 2007:3).
These conditions are usually met in MMORPGs, as section 2.5 will exemplify.
The second strand (language-focused learning) involves deliberate or intentional
learning of the language (Nation, 2007:6) through typical activities, such as
pronunciation practice, using word cards, intensive reading, translation, memorising
dialogues. These are usually entitled “learning strategies”. The third and fourth strands
(language-focused output and fluency) are closely interconnected as they are based on
productive learning through speaking and writing, although the last strand (fluency)
includes reading and listening as well. There is a great variety of activities involved in
the last two strands. However, due to practical reasons, such as time constraints and
lack of resources, only the first strand, meaning-focused input, will be applied to
incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) in the context of a specific online virtual
environment, the MMORPG World of Warcraft.
Notably, a comparison of two vocabulary acquisition studies utilising the first two
strands shows that generally, strand 1 (meaning-focused input) produces much less
learning, perhaps due to strand 2 (language-focused learning) involving conscious
effort on part of the learner. Waring and Takaki’s (2003) research based on a 56minute meaning-focused (strand 1) reading of a graded reader shows that only 4 words
were learnt “reasonably well” and 12 “partially” out of 25 vocabulary items. In contrast,
a study of Nation (2001:298) on deliberate vocabulary learning (strand 2) showed the
learning rate of 35 words in 60 minutes. Nevertheless, Nation and Webb (2011:114)
contest these findings and suggest that if more sensitive tests could be designed to
measure how much time is actually spent on vocabulary learning during extensive
reading, the comparison of the two types of learning could produce more reliable
evidence. Furthermore, strand 1 (meaning-focused input) also has the benefit of
6
improving learners’ receptive skills in an enjoyable manner while developing their
content matter knowledge (Nation, 2007:9; Schmidt, 2010:724). An example of the
latter is the array of different creatures encountered in the online game World of
Warcraft.
Having considered the optimal conditions needed for IVA to occur, the current
study will focus on meaning-focused input through reading and interaction with an
online computer game as an informal learning environment. It will investigate whether
incidental learning of vocabulary items can occur taking into account Schmidt’s (1990,
2010) Noticing Hypothesis, which emphasises word exposure frequency through
extensive input along with time and task demands, as well as Nation’s (2007) first
strand, which also concentrates on meaning-focused input. However, it is worth
noting here that all of the above points lose their significance if there is no motivation or
intrinsic interest on part of the learner to actively engage in the learning process,
specifically extensive reading in this case (Dörnyei, 1998:120; Huckin and Coady,
1999:188). As seen above (2.2.1), motivation is one of the internal factors that exerts
influence on noticing (Schmidt, 1990). Since online computer games usually facilitate
motivation (Yee, 2006; Gee, 2007; Sykes and Reinhardt, 2013), they were chosen as
the context of the present study with the presumption that the participants engaged in
them willingly and for personal enjoyment, thus providing a suitable platform for IVA,
which will be covered in more detail in 2.3.
2.3 Incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): definition
Since the 1990s, research into vocabulary in SLA has seen a significant increase
(Rott, 2012) while the acquisition of vocabulary through incidental learning (IVA)
remains one of the most widely debated issues. Schmitt (2010:29) characterises
incidental learning as a “by-product of language usage, without the intended purpose of
learning a particular linguistic feature”. Dörnyei (2009) and Rott (2012) further stipulate
that IVA refers to learners engaging in meaning-focused receptive language while
reading, listening, speaking or writing with no conscious intention to commit vocabulary
to memory. Zhu (2015:968) adds that the learners’ main goal is “to comprehend
[meaning] or communicate”, thus, it is not considered to be intentional learning.
However, Schmidt (1990, 2010) argues that IVA is not completely unintentional
either: after all, attention and noticing are requisites for any learning to happen, which
means the learners are conscious of the process, even if not at all times. Furthermore,
they may guess or infer the meaning of words from context, which implies awareness.
Inferring word meaning from context is a specific lexicon-oriented learning strategy and
7
is considered intentional learning (Oxford, 2003; Nation, 2008; Dörnyei, 2009; SavilleTroike, 2012; Zhu, 2015).
The incidental vs. intentional dichotomy in SLA has been analysed by many
researchers. Nevertheless, luminaries, such as Dörnyei (2009:171), Nation and Webb
(2011:112), support the argument that the two learning systems are complementary
and L2 efficiency can only be achieved through the co-operation of both. Ultimately,
there is a limit to what teachers can draw learners’ attention to and what can be learnt
in the classroom, therefore, additional incidental learning is necessary and should be
accrued from extensive input, especially through reading of authentic texts (PellicerSánchez and Schmitt, 2010:32). The dichotomy between incidental and intentional
learning, however, is outside of the scope of the current study, which focuses on IVA
as the unintentional or incidental acquisition of vocabulary from meaning-focused
input through reading (Nation, 2008), assisted by the Noticing Hypothesis (Schmidt,
1990, 2010) in the context of an online game.
2.3.1 Incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) through extensive reading
An overview of the literature shows that most studies on IVA have been conducted
using extensive reading practice. Extensive reading is generally viewed as a
pleasurable voluntary activity (Brown et al., 2008), which involves either teacherrecommended or self-chosen texts at a level suitable for the learner (Huckin and
Coady, 1999). It is a receptive cognitive ability that is considered “the ideal medium” for
vocabulary acquisition due to the following reasons: 1. printed materials provide more
time for the learner to process new words than aural input (Ellis, 1994, cited in Rott,
2012:1); 2. through reading, the L2 learner can acquire the meanings and connotations
of new vocabulary and even their usage in certain contexts (Zhu, 2015); 3. partially
known vocabulary can also be cumulatively enriched through this practice (Schmitt,
2010).
Perhaps the most vigorously debated issue within the field of IVA is word exposure
frequency during extensive reading. There is a general consensus on the incremental
nature of vocabulary acquisition from reading, however, there is no agreement on how
many and exactly what types of exposures are necessary for successful acquisition
(Huckin and Coady, 1999; Laufer and Goldstein, 2004; Zhu, 2015). In theory, word
exposure frequency influences vocabulary acquisition in two ways: 1. by increasing the
possibility of noticing and processing new words by the learner and 2. by increasing the
chance that an initial memory trace is retained, then through subsequent occurrences
is strengthened (Schmitt, 2010:161; Rott, 2012; Zhu, 2015:969). It is highly likely that a
8
word encountered frequently in a text will receive more attention from the learner and
thus, produce more cognitive processing or mental response (Zhu, 2015:969).
The first seminal works in the field of IVA were that of Saragi et al. (1978, cited in
Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt, 2010:33), who recommended a minimum of 10
repetitions of a vocabulary item in a text for IVA to occur. Their study was based on the
reading of an authentic novel (A Clockwork Orange by Burgess, 1972) and a test taken
by twenty native English students on the Russian slang words used in the novel. The
average score on a multiple-choice meaning recognition test was 76%. Later, Nagy et
al. (1985) suggested the probability of learning vocabulary from context after 1
exposure to be between 0.10 and 0.15, however, in a follow-up study, Nagy et al.
(1987) found this was much lower: 0.05. Furthermore, in his seminal work, Nation
(1990) surveyed previous studies on IVA, based upon which he recommended that, on
average, 5-16 incidental word exposures are necessary for full acquisition to occur.
Additionally, Horst et al. (1998) concluded that after 8 exposures in a text,
vocabulary items were more likely to be learnt. Waring and Takaki’s (2003) study also
shows a minimum of 8 exposures are needed for form recognition, however, in an
unprompted meaning test, even 18 exposures provided a low, 10-15% chance to recall
the meaning of a word. Three months later, both meaning recognition and translation
test scores dropped, the latter even more significantly, from 4.6 to 0.9. In addition, Wu
and Xu’s (2006) study of 55 Chinese students reading a 3,332 word long English story
shows that 14-17 exposures were necessary for IVA to occur, which is significantly
higher on average, but is congruent with Nation’s (1990) recommendation.
Another IVA study conducted by Kweon and Kim (2008) concurs with Wu and Xu
(2006), where 12 Korean learners of English read 3 authentic novels containing
134,013 words in the course of 5 weeks. The two researchers not only tested for word
exposure frequency, but also word class, which was not included in the studies
described above. Kweon and Kim’s (2008) findings demonstrate that among content
words, nouns were more easily retained than verbs and adjectives, possibly due to
nouns being more basic on a conceptual level (Kweon and Kim, 2008). Additionally, the
higher word exposure frequency (≥20) yielded the best retention rates in comparison
with 7-19 and 1-6 exposures in a post-test administered immediately after reading,
although some of the vocabulary with lower word exposure frequency was also
acquired when their meaning was crucial for comprehension. This was considered a
novel finding. However, after one month, a second post-test indicated that vocabulary
attrition occurred for nouns with 7-19 word exposure frequency.
Furthermore, Pigada and Schmitt (2006) also claim that higher word exposure
frequency produces better retention rates in meaning: except for single and 2-3
exposures, all other brackets (4-5, 6-10, 10+ and 20+) show clear overall improvement,
9
especially starting at 10+ exposures, on average from 8.3% to 23.7%. This was a case
study of one learner, which lasted for a month. During this time, the learner read
30,000 words. Overall, it is estimated that on average, 14.5 words/hour were learnt
during the study. Brown et al. (2008) agree with the Kweon and Kim (2008) as well as
Pigada and Schmitt (2006) in that higher word exposure frequency results in better
acquisition rates. Even though Brown et al. (2008) used different frequency bands: 2-3,
7-9, 10-13 and 15-20 through three different input modalities: reading-only, readingwhile-listening and listening-only (see 2.4); nevertheless, the data from the readingonly group showed that 15-20 exposures had the highest retention rate on a multiple
choice test, followed by the 7-9, then 10-13 and 2-3 exposures respectively. In
contrast, the meaning-translation test scores were considerably lower.
In addition, Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt’s (2010) work is noteworthy for its
replication of Saragi et al.’s (1978) study utilising a different methodology and research
questions. The participants were 20 Spanish students of English who read an
unabridged novel: Things Fall Apart by Achebe (2001) containing 67,000 words. Words
in the Nigerian language Ibo – unknown to the participants – were used throughout the
novel. It was concluded that meaning recognition rate of the unknown vocabulary was
the highest: 43%, followed by spelling recognition: 34%, and word class recall: 20%,
then meaning recall: 14%, suggesting that recall from only incidental learning tends to
be difficult. Also, there was a noticeable increase of vocabulary acquisition at 5-8
exposures: 11%, compared to single or 2-4 exposures: 5%, which rose sharply to 48%
at 10-17 exposures. At 28+ exposures lexical learning still continued, but at a lower
rate than in the 5-8 and 10-17 exposure ranges.
Finally, there is new data to support the above studies from Pellicer-Sánchez’s
(2015) study on eye-tracking movement during L2 reading of a 2,300 word long short
story containing 48 nonwords, e.g. holter for “house” or cambul for “ring” (PellicerSánchez, 2015:12). It was found that already after 3-4 exposures, the nonwords were
read faster and after 8 exposures they were read at a similar pace as real words that
were known previously (Pellicer-Sánchez, 2015:1). Also, 86% and 75% of the target
nonwords were recognised for form and meaning, whereas a meaning recall test
resulted in 55% (ibid.). This study concurs with previous research that also claimed a
minimum of 8 encounters with new vocabulary was needed for recognition, and in
general, active recall is more difficult than passive recognition (Horst et al., 1998;
Waring and Takaki, 2003; Kweon and Kim, 2008; Brown et al., 2008). For definitions of
active versus passive recognition and recall, see Laufer and Goldstein’s (2004)
categorisation below.
10
2.3.2 Testing incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): the controversy
explained
As previous studies suggest (Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt, 2010; Zhu, 2015), one
of the main reasons for the controversy regarding IVA seems to be the insurmountable
task of taking all possible variables and factors into consideration when conducting
research in this field, thus leading to a large variety of tests employed to measure IVA.
Some of the variables are the age, aptitude, motivation, proficiency level of
participants, even the different L2s learnt; others are the length and nature (authentic
or not) of texts used in the studies, different time periods spent on reading these texts,
real or nonwords used as target vocabulary to be learnt and various modalities used as
input, including textual, visual and aural. Previous studies took into consideration
different aspects of vocabulary: word class, spelling, form, meaning and level of
frequency (Zhu, 2015). However, it should be noted here that previous research did not
test for meaning at different levels (recall and recognition) consistently (Zhu, 2015:972).
Laufer and Goldstein (2004:406-407) categorised four different degrees of knowledge
of meaning in vocabulary acquisition based on 435 L2 learners’ tests:
1. active recall – the L2 target word has to be supplied, e.g. translation test
where the prompt is given in L1
2. passive recall – a demonstration of comprehension of the L2 vocabulary,
which is given as a prompt: e.g. translation into L1
3. active recognition – choosing the L2 target word from 4 options, the prompt is
in L1
4. passive recognition – the L2 target word is given as a prompt and there are 4
meanings given in L1 to choose from.
The results of their study show a reliable hierarchy of difficulty as follows: active
recall > passive recall > active recognition > passive recognition (Schmitt,
2010:85). Recalling form or meaning from memory (either passively or actively) is
considered to require a higher degree of knowledge as it indicates a better memory
trace than recognition. Most previous studies have tested for form and meaning
recognition in IVA (see 2.1.2) and administered active or passive recall tests (Zhu,
2015). The results unanimously show that vocabulary knowledge acquired from
extensive reading is usually quite fragile and will undergo attrition after 2-4 weeks if not
encountered or used in the meantime (Waring and Takaki, 2003; Kweon and Kim,
2008; Brown et al., 2008).
However, most studies utilised multiple-choice tests, which automatically
guarantee a 25% chance of correct answers by guessing. This is by no means a
reliable indication of vocabulary acquisition and it overlooks the measurement of subtle
improvements or partial word gains (Zhu, 2015). Therefore, Kweon and Kim (2008:194)
11
recommend meaning-translation tests, self-report checklist measures and word-form
recognition tests – in general, a mix of different measurement instruments to overcome
the weaknesses of multiple-choice tests (Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt, 2010).
Unfortunately, the current study could not accommodate all of these recommendations.
Therefore, it was more practical and less time consuming to test only for initial
receptive vocabulary knowledge of the participants, for example through having them
recognise word-form and provide a synonym for the target vocabulary (see research
instruments in section 3.4).
At the same time, the present study attempted to conform with Nation’s (2008)
three requirements, which are widely accepted as necessary for vocabulary tests:
reliability (assisted by minimum 30 items to be assessed, familiar formatting, clear
instructions and possible variations in answering), validity (suitable for the leaners’
level, taken seriously without cheating, used for the purpose for which it was designed)
and practicality - suitable length, convenient marking, easily interpretable scores and
tests are inexpensive to produce copies of (ibid., 153-155). These features were
carefully considered and a range of tasks was designed to strengthen the reliability,
validity and practicality of the research instruments (see section 3.4).
Finally, as the present study’s focus is on comprehension of meaning, it should be
pointed out that certain semi-contextualised techniques can assist L2 vocabulary
acquisition to a great extent, specifically recall of comprehension (Oxford and Crookall,
1990). These are: words paired with imagery, the application of synonymy and the
grouping of vocabulary items according to semantic categories (Oxford and Crookall,
1990; Schmitt and McCarthy, 1997:212-213; Schmitt, 2010:52-55). However, a
limitation of illustrations is that visual representations are restricted to concrete nouns,
certain verbs of movement and concrete adjectives, thus decreasing the pool of target
vocabulary used for testing (Schmitt and McCarthy, 1997; Schmitt, 2010:52-55).
Therefore, the use of imagery was applied to concrete nouns taken from the online
computer game chosen as the context of the present study, e.g. goblin, murloc, kobold,
worg.
Furthermore, since the main purpose of the current study was to test only for initial
receptive vocabulary knowledge, a sensitive test was designed in an attempt to follow
Nagy et al. (1985) and Nation’s (2008) recommendation. This type of test usually
covers a small amount of vocabulary and applies only one variable to the study as per
Huckin and Coady (1999), which is word exposure frequency in the present study. L2
was used in this study and all degrees of knowledge were tested, except for active
recall due to certain limitations of the study outlined in the Conclusion, including time
constraints and lack of resources.
12
2.4 Vocabulary acquisition through multimodal environments
The final step before introducing the context of the present study in more detail is
covering vocabulary acquisition through multimodal environments. A learning
environment can be considered multimodal if it uses at least two different modes of
content knowledge: verbal (through texts) and non-verbal (visual, aural, spatial) as
defined by Paivio (1986, cited in Moreno and Mayer, 2007:310) and Gee (2007). The
learners who use these educational environments either for intentional or nonintentional learning can acquire knowledge through both modalities, thus enhancing
their multimodal literacy skills (Schrader and Lawless, 2010:200; Zheng et al.,
2015:773).
For example, a study conducted by Tight (2010) with a group of 128 American
undergraduate adults attending a Spanish course measured L2 vocabulary acquisition
through 4 different modalities: visual, auditory, kinaesthetic and mixed modality (the
latter combining all 3). The learners’ most preferred mode was visual, while the highest
overall mean gains were achieved by the mixed-modality group in all 3 post-tests.
Additionally, a study at Michigan State University conducted with 26 American learners
of beginner Russian utilised three different input modalities to test vocabulary
acquisition (Sydorenko, 2010): video, audio and captions. The group that saw a video
with audio and captions learned more word meanings as shown in a translation test
than the groups that saw video with captions and video with audio only. The data also
show that captions received the most attention, followed by video and audio
(Sydorenko, 2010). As seen from the above, a combination of both verbal and nonverbal modalities tends to produce higher results in administered post-tests. However,
these studies did not measure word exposure frequency and its effect on IVA, which
points to a gap in research.
Additionally, multimodal environments can be interactive or non-interactive, as
categorised by Moreno and Mayer (2007). In the former, multidirectional
communication between the learner and the environment is possible and the learner
has control over their own learning as their actions determine the presented words and
pictures; however, in the latter, pre-determined messages do not allow for any
interaction between the learner and the environment (e.g. a narrated animation or a
text with illustrations). Notably, Yang and Wu’s (2015) recent research from Taiwan
conducted with 93 undergraduates learning English concludes that most participants
preferred an interactive mixed modality learning environment (MyEVA preference
mode) over a less interactive mixed modality programme (MyEVA basic mode), with
13
using an Internet dictionary or a paper dictionary being the least chosen modalities.
Furthermore, the highest rate of successful learning outcomes was achieved when
using the MyEVA programme’s preference mode (Yang and Wu, 2015:317). Therefore,
in order to stimulate interest and engagement in the participants, the MMORPG World
of Warcraft was chosen as the context of the present study as it can be considered an
interactive multimodal environment for the following reasons: it has both verbal and
non-verbal modalities and the players continuously interact with the game environment.
2.5 Context for incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): World of
Warcraft (WoW)
Note: From this section onwards, learners will be referred to as players in order to
further exemplify the incidental nature of learning activities they are engaged in when
playing online games.
2.5.1
World of Warcraft (WoW)
World of Warcraft is a 3-D real-time digital strategy game. It was released in
November 2004 and has had 5 expansions since then, with the latest one entitled
Legion scheduled to launch in August 2016. The game can be played on realms
(official Blizzard servers which host the game world) that are divided into 4 types: PvE
(player-versus-environment), PvP (player-versus-player), RP (role-playing) and RPPvP
(role-playing PvP). Players can choose a realm depending on their game-style
preferences, although these may overlap in-game.
Furthermore, players tend to voluntarily spend considerable amounts of their social
lives in WoW (Yee, 2006; Williams et al., 2008:1002; Nardi, 2010). On the one hand,
this is probably due to the immersive nature of the game, which creates a multimodal
environment. As Figure 1 shows, the images, weather effects, 3-D objects (e.g. nature,
characters) and ambient sounds (which cannot be reproduced here) all contribute to an
appealing fantasy world, which may provide the sensation of being immersed in the
game world (Gee, 2007; Paivio, 1986, cited in Moreno and Mayer, 2007:310; Peterson,
2010; Whippey, 2011).
14
Fig. 1. Walking with hunter pet in Elwynn Forest on a sunny day, World of Warcraft – screenshot taken by
researcher on 09/04/2016.
On the other hand, players are often drawn to WoW because it increases their
motivation (Yee, 2006; Sykes and Reinhardt, 2013), which is one of the fundamental
internal factors influencing their attention and noticing as learners (Schmidt, 2010:730733). Gee (2007), Juul (2005) and Rieber (1996, cited in Dickey, 2007:256) found that
the high intrinsic motivation to participate in game-play can be explained by players
doing quests (or missions for rewards, such as experience points, gear and currency)
while challenging themselves as the game progressively becomes more difficult. As
illustrated in Figure 2, this intricate process of levelling provides a sense of
achievement and consistently strengthens one’s avatar’s gear and abilities (Dickey,
2007; Walker Rettberg, 2008; Nardi, 2010). Additionally, in WoW, failure helps the
depth of experience which leads to players wanting to improve their gaming skills;
concurrently, it provides instant feedback on their performance, the worst case
scenario being the death of the avatar caused by another player or mobs, creatures
from the game (Steinkuehler, 2004; 2005; Juul, 2005). All the above elements (e.g.
immersion and levelling) paired with socialising in-game enrich the players’ gaming
experience by increasing their intrinsic motivation.
15
Fig. 2. A level 1 versus a level 100 character (night elf priest, the researcher’s avatars): the gear and spells
(not all visible here) are much more potent on the latter, Morniie. Screenshot taken by researcher on
1/06/2016.
2.5.2
MMORPGs and World of Warcraft as informal SLA learning
environments
As mentioned in the Introduction, MMORPGs are an attraction for researchers in
Naturalistic CALL because they are considered online informal learning environments
suitable for SLA. Apart from the in-game rewards and achievements, research studies
have discovered that the key reasons for extensive playing are usually socialising and
competing with other players (Rankin et al., 2006; Thorne et al., 2009; Nardi, 2010;
Cornillie et al., 2012; Thorne and Fischer, 2012). These support the theoretical
assumption that in an interactive learning environment such as online games learners
construct understandings by interactions with tools, materials, information and other
learners (Gee, 2007; Dickey, 2007; Sykes and Reinhardt, 2013; Zheng et al.,
2013:207), which, in turn, encourage intrinsic motivation crucial for effective learning
(Dörnyei, 1998; Gee, 2007). Therefore, in the past decade, a growing number of
research studies have been conducted on MMORPGs, including WoW. These explore
mainly the effect of communication and collaboration among players on their SLA.
16
For example, most recently, Wu et al. (2014) investigated the attitudes of 19
casual or non-gamers of an MMORPG called Everquest through quantitative and
qualitative analysis and found that participants used English to communicate with other
players in an enjoyable way, mainly for the purposes of becoming familiar with the
game. Likewise, Zheng et al. (2012) collected and analysed thirteen different types of
communicative activities from a 47-minute long gaming episode including 4 participants
(one of them a researcher) who were all new to World of Warcraft. The data show that
the first three most frequent activities were coordinating, distributing gameplay
knowledge and reporting on actions. In support of these, negotiation of meaning and
understanding other’s perspective were also high on the list (Zheng et al., 2012:249).
The activities assisted the players in achieving their individual and collective goals: in
their case, questing in a human area called Westfall. However, the study did not
measure the players’ vocabulary acquisition from game-play.
Furthermore, another study, conducted by Rama et al. (2012) with a small number
of participants learning Spanish, found that WoW creates a safe “learning and
languaging” space, it emphasizes communicative competence and promotes
collaborative action between expert and novice players as the latter might need more
help at the start, specifically in game mechanics (Rama et al., 2012:249). The creation
of a safe learning environment in MMORPGs is shared by Zheng et al. (2012) and
Peterson (2010, 2012:376-377), who point out that the majority of players’ inhibition
and anxiety reduced during game-play mainly due to using typed text and an
anonymous avatar during the interactions they participated in. Additionally, their
communicative competence was enhanced in general. However, their vocabulary
acquisition was not measured.
Notably, Kongmee et al. (2011) conducted action research, whereby the
researchers immersed themselves into an MMORPG to play with their participants to
observe and assist their game-play. Likewise, their study concluded that MMORPGs
are digital “safe spaces” for language learning where players are highly motivated to
engage in communication and interaction with others (Kongmee et al., 2011; Coxhead
and Bytheway, 2015). However, it is important to point out here that although playing
an MMORPG for beginner L2 players proved to be quite a challenge, they became
more confident and loquacious as they familiarised themselves with the game
mechanics (Peterson, 2012). Perhaps these “brutally authentic” game environments
(meaning both game-texts and players’ language used as stated by Rama et al.,
2012:336) might be more suitable for intermediate and advanced L2 players.
Therefore, the present study requested the participants have an IELTS 5.5 score,
specifically in Reading (see 3.5).
17
Another noteworthy study that should be mentioned here is Bytheway’s (2015)
taxonomy of vocabulary learning strategies used when playing WoW, which was
conducted with six experienced players who were SLA learners at the same time. The
study revealed 15 different vocabulary learning strategies (Bytheway, 2015:514-518)
that were actively and successfully used by the participants (e.g. interacting with
players, requesting/giving explanations, receiving/giving feedback). The findings
suggest that learners can acquire vocabulary through different aspects of game-play,
such as motivation and socialising. However, the most interesting and relevant points
to the current study, which were reported by the six players, are: “noticing
frequency/repetition of words” and “equating image/action to word” as being useful for
language learning when playing (Bytheway, 2015:516).
All the above studies are suitable examples to show that MMORPGs – including
WoW – can improve L2 players’ meaning-focused output and even fluency (Peterson,
2012; Coxhead and Bytheway, 2015:69), which are two of Nation’s (2007) Four
Strands – see 2.2.2. However, these studies have not focused on the other strands:
e.g. language-focused learning, since MMORPGs are not formal learning environments
where players are instructed by tutors to pay attention to form or any other aspects of
language. There have also been very few studies that explored the first strand:
meaning-focused input. Therefore, the present study attempts to fill the gap by using
this particular strand to measure IVA from game-play.
2.5.3
The MMORPG World of Warcraft as an interactive multimodal learning
environment with rich meaning-focused input
As mentioned previously, MMORPGs, WoW included, are interactive multimodal
environments where players are exposed to both verbal (different types of text) and
non-verbal (visual, aural and spatial) elements during gameplay – components which
are missing when reading books (Peterson, 2010; Whippey, 2011). Furthermore, two of
the most important aspects of MMORPGs, visual representations and quests (or tasks
given to players by NPCs, see Figures 3. and 4. below) provide extensive authentic
input for SLA (Walker Rettberg, 2008; Thorne et al., 2012). As Dickey (2007) and Nardi
(2010) explain, the role of quests in MMORPGs is to advance the players’ avatars
through the process of levelling, which is the gradual increase in experience measured
in units entitled levels. All quests are based on the game’s narrative environment,
gradually increase in difficulty, provide resources and experience for levelling and
encourage collaboration and strategic planning among the players (Dickey, 2007:264).
In addition, these functions strongly contribute to fostering players’ motivation while
advancing gameplay as they instil a sense of achievement (Dickey, 2007:263; Gee,
2007).
18
Fig. 3. Accepting a quest (Protect the Frontier!) from Guard Thomas at East Elwynn Bridge, Elwynn Forest,
World of Warcraft – screenshot taken by researcher on 09/04/2016.
Furthermore, quest texts are highly complex in linguistic diversity and complexity,
including sentence structures, as Thorne et al.’s (2012) mixed methods study shows.
The researchers triangulated data from 64 Dutch and American WoW players’
questionnaires and analysed 363 random quests containing 36,856 words that were
highly likely to be met and read by the participants. Both the Lexical Sophistication (LS)
and Mean Segmental Type-Token Ratio (MSTTR) tests utilised were high, meaning
that there was a large number (>.60) of lower-frequency vocabulary (above 2,000 of
the American National Corpus) as well as a high proportion (.78) of unique word types
(Thorne et al., 2012:288-290). As this study confirms, the plethora of quests in WoW
can be recognised as providing substantial amounts of meaning-focused input, and
are therefore relevant to Nation’s (2007) first strand. Furthermore, the quests can
enable Schmidt’s (1990, 2010) noticing through word exposure frequency.
One limitation of the quest texts in WoW is their transferability to other contexts
(Thorne et al., 2009:811): due to the narrative taking place in a fantasy world, some of
the low-frequency vocabulary is archaic or highly specific to the game only. For
example, see Fig. 4.: the quest uses the word prowler for “wolf”, although in this
particular quest, this archaic form is explained by the modern term.
19
Fig. 4. Protect the Frontier! – quest text from Guard Thomas at East Elwynn Bridge, Elwynn Forest, World
of Warcraft – screenshot taken by researcher on 09/04/2016.
However, that is not to exclude the possibility of low-frequency vocabulary’s application
in real life either, depending on the players’ interests and language proficiency.
Additionally, Chik (2015:82) argues that even though expertise and vocabulary from
online games may not be directly related to daily communication, the process of
acquiring these can become “a booster” for language learners.
In summary, this literature review has discussed two optimal conditions for
incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA): Schmidt’s (1990, 2010) Noticing Hypothesis
and Nation’s (2007) Four Strands. Due to time constraints and a lack in resources, it
was decided that only the first strand (meaning-focused input) will be applied to the
current study along with three determinants of noticing: word exposure frequency, time
and task demands. These will be utilised to measure one aspect of word knowledge
due to time limitations: comprehension of meaning at the initial receptive level. Finally,
the context of the current study will be the online game World of Warcraft, as it
provides a large amount of meaning-focused input and word exposure frequency
through quest texts.
20
2.6 Research questions
Previous studies have shown an improvement in vocabulary acquisition through
multimodal environments, such as MyEva (Yang and Wu, 2015) or Tight’s (2010)
mixed modality study, which used visual, aural, spatial and interactive modes for
learning. Since the context of the current study is also a 3-D interactive multimodal
environment rich in imagery, it is presumed that visual representations (particularly of
creatures, locations) and actions from quest texts may facilitate IVA even in a relatively
brief period of time: 2-4 hours of game-play. Additionally, Schmidt’s (1990, 2010) first
determinant for noticing, that is, word exposure frequency, will be applied as a variable
in this study. Therefore, the following main research questions were formulated:
1. To what extent does the number of in-game word exposure frequency facilitate
the comprehension of incidental vocabulary?
2. To what extent does the interaction with the game environment through visual
representations of creatures and locations assist with the comprehension of
incidental vocabulary from game-play?
3. To what extent does the interaction with quest texts through in-game actions
facilitate the comprehension of incidental vocabulary?
3.0 Methodology
3.1 Research paradigm
For the purpose of the current study, the interpretivist paradigm has been chosen
as the theoretical framework mainly due to its interpretation of how people understand
their world through experience, achieved “through perceptual and cognitive activity”
(Hammersley, 2012:1-2). An interpretivist researcher tries to understand the
“subjective” meaning behind an action (in this case, incidental vocabulary acquisition
through the medium of online gaming), which means interpreting it through the lens of
“the actors” or game participants in this case (Schwandt, 2000:191; Mason, 2006:22;
Darlaston-Jones, 2007:21; Goldkuhl, 2012:4-5; Bryman, 2012:380). The researcher
works close to the practice field, thus being able to engage in the studied practices
themselves (Goldkuhl, 2012:6). Additionally, the interpretivist framework allows the
21
researcher to participate in “the actors’ lives”, which means they attempt to think and
feel like their participants while achieving “inside” understanding (Schwandt, 2000:192).
Furthermore, as this study had only 3 participants for the purpose of exploring to
what extent incidental vocabulary acquisition occurs in a specific online game, it was
most suitable to conduct a case study (Dörnyei, 1997; Bryman, 2012).
3.2 Mixed methodology, research instruments and data analysis
Generally, qualitative research selects samples for investigative purposes,
whereas quantitative research uses samples statistically representative of a certain
population (Carter and Little, 2007:1318). Therefore, mixing these two methods can
encourage creative thinking and extensions to new dimensions, such as online or
virtual environments (Mason, 2006:9-14). Subsequently, the current study falls in line
with this idea and the interpretivist paradigm as it investigates the lived experiences of
players in an online game and its potential influence on their English language learning
abilities.
Furthermore, the interpretivist paradigm chosen for the current study is believed to
function well with a mixed methodology and exploratory studies. Mixing quantitative
and qualitative methods was deemed to offer more perspectives and in-depth
explanations of the issue being researched (Mason, 2006; Sharp, 2012; Mayoh and
Onwuegbuzie, 2015: 92). With regards to the above, the researcher designed a
combination of vocabulary tests with the same input for all participants (objective
measurement) and one-to-one semi-structured interviews (qualitative method). The
interviews were expected to show more insight into the personal opinions of the
participants (Lichtman, 2010) on game-play and its connection to their vocabulary
learning, whereas the vocabulary tests were carefully designed to consistently measure
the potential changes and improvements in their short-term vocabulary acquisition. Due
to time constraints, only 2-4 hours of game-play were required of the participants.
For the purposes of data analysis, the concept of methodological triangulation as
first described by Denzin (1978, cited in Johnson et al, 2007:114-115) and later
supported by other researchers (Sechrest and Sidani, 1995; Mason, 2006; Sharp,
2012; Mayoh and Onwuegbuzie, 2015) was chosen. Through triangulation, two or more
methods are used to observe the same phenomenon, which can contribute to “superior
explanations” of it through either “convergence, inconsistency or contradiction”
(Johnson et al, 2007:115). Administering the vocabulary pre-and post-tests within 48
hours of game-play followed by a one-to-one semi-structured interview 1 week after
game-play provided a suitable combination of quantitative and qualitative data for the
purposes of the current study. The interviews ensured the “in-depth description of lived
22
experience” (Mayoh and Onwuegbuzie, 2015:101), while the pre- and post-vocabulary
tests measured possible IVA objectively. Finally, as triangulation can improve the
estimates of a study, it was also chosen to strengthen the validity and reliability of the
findings (Sechrest and Sidani, 1995:84; Sharp, 2012; Mayoh and Onwuegbuzie,
2015:97).
3.3 The design of research instruments and data collection
Due to the exploratory nature of this study into the field of incidental vocabulary
acquisition in the context of playing an online game, the quest texts from World of
Warcraft were chosen to provide meaning-focused input (Nation, 2007). These quest
texts became the basis for the research instruments of the current study: vocabulary
tests and one-to-one semi-structured interviews (see Table 1).
The participants had to read the quests (in-game tasks or missions) in order to be
able to progress when playing. However, there are 13 different races available for
players in WoW (Blizzard, 2016) and all have different starting areas with specific
storylines, which encompass a great variety of quests. It would not have been feasible
to cover all in such a limited research study. Thus, the most popular race (“human”)
was singled out for this study.
Firstly, all the quest texts from the human starting area were copied from a public
website (the most up-to-date one at the time of writing,
wow.gamepedia.com/Elwynn_Forest_storyline) and collected into a word document.
The number of words added up to 5,395 (45 quests in total, 9 quest chains). Secondly,
the vocabulary items were input and analysed through the COCA corpus (Corpus of
Contemporary American English) as WoW originates from the USA. Next, the 599
words belonging to the lower frequency ranges (500-3,000 and >3,000) of COCA were
manually added to an excel sheet for comparison and preparation of the vocabulary
tests. Additionally, there was a time constraint on vocabulary testing as there were 4
stages of data collection (see Table 1). Therefore, the Standardised Vocabulary Size
Test (Nation, 2008) with 140 multiple-choice items could not be used in this research
study.
23
The stages of data collection were created as Table 1 shows:
Table 1. Data collection: sequence, stages, duration and location (research site)
Sequence (in days)
Stages of data
Duration
Location
collection
Day 1.
1. Vocabulary pre-test Approx. 20 minutes
University
Library
Day 2. (at
2. Game-play
Between 2-4 hours
Participants’
(questing in WoW)
participants’ leisure)
home, no
observation
Day 3. (within 48
3. Vocabulary
post- Approx. 15 minutes
University
hours after gametest
Library
play)
Day 4. (1 week after
4. Semi-structured
Approx. 15 minutes
University
game-play)
interview
Library or Skype
To replace the SVST, the researcher prepared a pre- and a post-vocabulary test to
evaluate the participants’ IVA. These tests were based on the lower frequency 599
vocabulary items in order to check the participants’ knowledge of the words chosen
both before and after playing World of Warcraft. First, the 599 items were classified
based on the number of occurrences (between 1 and 44) in accordance with previous
studies conducted on word frequency exposure during extensive reading (Horst et al.,
1998; Waring and Takaki, 2003; Kweon and Kim, 2008; Brown et al., 2008; PellicerSánchez and Schmitt, 2010). Then, 37 vocabulary items were chosen (only content
words: nouns and verbs) in order to ensure the “sensitivity” of testing, that is: using a
small amount of vocabulary items (maximum two types of word class) and applying
only one variable, word exposure frequency (Nagy et al., 1985; Nation, 2008). The 37
vocabulary items were not tested for word form (grammar), only their original form was
used (for example, extinguish – which appears in the quest texts as extinguish,
extinguished, extinguishing). These decisions were made based on Nation’s (2008)
requirements for practical vocabulary tests. Additionally, the results of all tests were
kept strictly confidential. However, individual results were made available to the
participants at their own request at the end of their interviews.
With regards to the vocabulary tests, they were renamed “activities” in order to
reduce the atmosphere of a formal setting. The content of both tests was the same
(vocabulary items and exercises). The game-play stage was tested by the researcher
and it was concluded that a more experienced “gamer” participant could cover the
human starting area (Elwynn Forest) in 2 hours, a less experienced participant would
probably need up to 4 hours. The researcher encouraged the participants to take
breaks when playing if needed – and to stop game-play when they finished the final
quests in Elwynn Forest since the vocabulary tests included only this area. After the
post-test, if participants wished, they could play more – this did not influence their
interviews in retrospect.
24
Finally, one-to-one semi-structured interviews were prepared in order to allow for
the flexibility of the participants’ subjective opinions to surface while acknowledging the
stance of the researcher at the same time (Lichtman, 2010; Bryman, 2012). Ideally, 5
random participants were supposed to be interviewed as this is considered an
appropriate sample size for qualitative studies (Lichtman, 2010). However, there were
only 3 participants in total, thus, all of them were interviewed. The participants were
also free to choose whether they wanted to be interviewed face-to-face or over Skype –
the latter option was chosen by all. Each interview was audio-recorded and transcribed
(see Appendix 8.5.1 for a sample). Data collection occurred throughout the span of two
weeks in May, 2016 and due to the lack of further participants, it closed mid-June 2016.
3.4 Vocabulary tests: exercises I-IV.; reliability, validity and
practicality of tests; quest sample
As the context of the current study was chosen to be the MMORPG World of
Warcraft, which can be considered an interactive multimodal learning environment
(Gee, 2007; Moreno and Mayer, 2007), the researcher decided to design the exercises
in the vocabulary tests using both verbal and non-verbal (visual) input in order to
simulate the game environment as closely as possible. Therefore, the following
exercises were designed based on the three research questions (see 2.6).
3.4.1 Vocabulary tests: exercises I.-IV.
The first research question aimed to investigate if in-game word exposure
frequency can facilitate incidental vocabulary acquisition (IVA) specifically through
quest texts. Therefore, the 37 vocabulary items were grouped according to the number
of occurrences in all the quests in Elwynn Forest (see Table 2). After this, they were
spread out across the four different exercises of the vocabulary tests.
Table 2. The 37 vocabulary items listed according to word exposure frequency
1 to 4
5 to 7 occurrences
8 to 14 occurrences
15+
occurrences
occurrences
award
abbey
bridge
collect
gather
deliver
pie
guard
investigate
extinguish
vineyard
mine
road
farm
objectives
situation
lake
receive
threat
rest
boar
volunteer
schedule
gnoll
search
goblin
weapon
gryphon
brook
kobold
compensation
murloc
pathway
worg
recruit
reward
starving
25
The second research question intended to find out whether the interaction with the
game environment through visual representations of creatures and locations can assist
with IVA from game-play. For this purpose, exercises I. and II. were designed using
vocabulary items specific to the fantasy world of WoW, such as creatures, e.g. murloc,
worg, kobold, etc. and locations, e.g. bridge, vineyard, pathway, abbey. It was decided
that matching exercises (image to concept and vice versa) are the best to assist recall
of vocabulary knowledge, especially for nouns (Schmitt and McCarthy, 1997; Nation,
2008; Rott, 2012). Both exercises used verbal and non-verbal (visual) modalities for
testing (see Fig. 5.). These words were specifically chosen to ensure that they could
not be met by the participants outside the game environment before the vocabulary
post-test.
Exercise I. Match one of the following pictures with the name
provided (10 seconds). You will see them only once!
Example: mana wyrm
answer: B
Screenshots taken from www.wowhead.com
Exercise II. Read the words you were given and match them with the
numbers! They refer to locations or places in the game.
Example: look at the screenshot, choose a word (or words), write the
answer(s) – number(s) - next to the word(s) in the table
(10 seconds/screenshot)
Answer: garrison
Screenshot taken in-game by researcher on 09/03/2016.
Fig. 5. Examples from Exercises I. and II.
26
The third research question aimed to discover whether the reading of and
interaction with quest texts can facilitate IVA from game-play. Exercises III. and IV.
were designed using vocabulary items taken from quest texts (see Fig. 6.). Exercise III.
was based on Nation (2008) and Rott’s (2012) work, which suggest providing
synonyms, meaning or writing a short sentence using the vocabulary that requires
definition. Exercise IV. follows the same format as Nation’s (2008) Vocabulary Level’s
Test and both exercises used only verbal modality, mainly due to time constraints.
Exercise III. Try to explain in your own words the meaning of the following vocabulary items – or
give a synonym (=> same meaning, different word) – or write a sentence using the words. If you
do not know them, leave the space blank.
Example: hero
a person considered brave by others ( meaning)
a champion (synonym)
He became a hero in the war by saving others. ( sentence)
Exercise IV. Circle one answer from the possibilities given.
Example: skim: I <skimmed> the text.
a. wrote it
b. cleaned it
c. read it over quickly
Answer: c.
Fig. 6. Examples from Exercises III. and IV. of the vocabulary pre- and post-tests.
3.4.2 Reliability, validity and practicality of vocabulary tests
All exercises were designed with Laufer and Goldstein’s (2004) classification of
degrees of vocabulary knowledge in mind (active and passive recall, active and
passive recognition). Due to the short amount of time spent by the participants ingame, it was decided to test only for passive recognition and passive recall of
vocabulary meaning, except in Exercise III., where participants had the choice of
writing a short sentence that would define the vocabulary items. It is vital to point out
that the matching exercises (I. and II.) were considered more convenient to start with
as each slide was timed (10 seconds/vocabulary item), requiring all participants to
answer simultaneously. In contrast, the other two exercises (III. and IV.) were
completed at the participants’ leisure (within the given time frames, see vocabulary
27
tests in Appendix, 8.4) as it was assumed that more time was needed for processing
exercises III. and IV. Additionally, the participants were encouraged not to guess
answers even if they felt worried about their results: it was explained to them by the
researcher before both tests that they should be as honest as possible in providing
their answers. However, it was not possible to ascertain whether any answers were
guessed during the testing stage.
Furthermore, the vocabulary tests were designed to comply with Nation’s (2008)
three requirements: for reliability, there were more than 30 items chosen following a
familiar format, clear instructions and variations to answering; for validity, the
vocabulary items were chosen to match the participants’ language level (IELTS 5.5),
there was no possibility of cheating on their part as the tests were taken in the
researcher’s presence and they were used for the purpose they were designed for
(Nation and Webb, 2011). Finally, for practicality, the tests were of a suitable length
(37 vocabulary items and maximum 20 minutes long), easy to mark and interpret, as
well as inexpensive to produce.
3.4.3 Quest sample from World of Warcraft
In order to illustrate and clarify the purpose of all research questions, including
visual representations, actions and word exposure frequency, the quest Protect the
Frontier! shown as an example in the literature review (2.5.4) is explained in more
detail here (see Fig.7.).
Fig. 7. The objectives of the quest Protect the Frontier! –
quest text from Guard Thomas at East Elwynn Bridge, Elwynn Forest, World of Warcraft –
screenshot taken by researcher on 09/04/2016.
Once the players accept this quest, they have to search for prowlers (gray
forest wolves) and young forest bears. They do so by walking around the forest and
very soon they encounter the creatures in-game (see Fig. 8.). They are able to read
their nametags as every single creature in WoW has one. This is how the players know
which mobs they need for their quests.
28
Fig. 8. Meeting prowlers and young forest bears in Elwynn Forest. Screenshot taken by researcher on
09/04/2016.
When the creatures are found, they usually have to be slain for quest completion –
as soon as the player does the action of slaying, an on-screen message appears in the
middle of the screen to notify how many creatures are already slain, see Fig. 9.
Fig. 9. 5/8 Prowler of Forest Wolf slain,
a message to notify the quest advancement –
screenshot taken by researcher on 09/04/2016.
29
As seen from the above screenshots, the players need to read and interact with
the quest texts and on-screen vocabulary in order to advance their game-play.
However, only four words from the 37 items included in the tests appear in on-screen
messages (such as the one in fig. 9.): investigate, extinguish, gather and collect –
therefore, an analysis of on-screen vocabulary items was not included in this research
study. On the other hand, the creatures from exercise I. appear in large numbers
throughout Elwynn Forest and will be encountered approximately 40+ times by the
participants during questing. Therefore, they were suitable to be included for the
analysis of word exposure frequency.
3.5 Semi-structured interviews
The one-to-one semi-structured interview was designed based on the research
questions as well, in support of the vocabulary tests. Questions 1-3 (see Appendix 8.5)
consisted of the initial stage of collecting general feedback on playing the game and
the participants’ impression of it. Question 4 (see Appendix 8.5) and its consecutive
four sub-questions followed the research questions and were meant to gather the
participants’ lived experiences of word exposure frequency, visual representations of
images (creatures and locations) and actions from quest texts in-game. The researcher
also added the questions Why? and How? to prompt the participants’ personal
opinions.
3.6 Participants
In order to call for participants from a variety of English SLA learners, permission
was obtained to present the research study and invite participants during the insessional English language classes at the Language Centre. Furthermore, the Ethics
Application was approved (see Appendix 7.1) and a pamphlet was displayed on the
University Library’s Noticeboard in order to reach a wider group of students (see
Appendix 7.2). To ensure a smooth transition from one stage of the data collection to
the other, the participants were also contacted and updated on the different stages
through email.
The participants were aged 18+ and had to meet two criteria: 1. having an overall
IELTS level of 5.5/CEFR B2, specifically in Reading, in order to ease their
understanding of the quest texts (Rama et al., 2012) as well as 2. experience of playing
computer games. Ideally, a minimum of 5 and a maximum of 8 participants at IELTS
level 5.5 (non-native speakers of English) were needed for this research project. In the
end, even though there were enquiries from more participants, only 3 took part in the
study.
30
3.7 Confidentiality and anonymity
When the participants volunteered, they were emailed a Consent Form and
Participation Guidelines, in which they were informed about the study in detail, in
language suitable for their English level (see Appendix 8.2 and 8.3). The Consent Form
briefly outlined the “rights and responsibilities” of the participants and the researcher
(Hammersley and Traianou, 2012:7). The participants were also notified that their
participation was voluntary and they were allowed to opt out of at any time if they
wished since consent is central to the participants’ choice and they had the freedom to
refuse taking part in research or withdraw anytime for any reason (Howe and Moses,
1999; Barchard, 2003). Furthermore, the research did not gather, nor reveal identityspecific data, nor any information the participants wished to withhold after having
received feedback from the researcher in the form of findings – thus ensuring the
genuine purpose of the research towards their contributions. Pseudonyms chosen by
the participants were used instead of their real names to ensure anonymity – these
were their WoW characters’ names. From here on, they will be referred to as
Magekrasus, Wajis and Kimkimkim. It should be noted that Magekrasus and Wajis had
played WoW before in their L1, but Kimkimkim was completely new to the game.
Finally, no participant was treated unfairly or discriminated against (Howe and
Moses, 1999). The researcher shared all the information necessary to ensure the
participants were comfortable with the research process and did not deceive them with
regards to the aims of the study. All data was kept confidential and password protected
during the process of writing the research study.
3.8 Potential risks
The project was considered to be of low risk. However, possible fatigue caused by
playing the computer game WoW was expected to occur, especially if the participants
(or players) were new to it. Therefore, the game-play took place at their leisure in a
comfortable environment (their homes) and they were encouraged to take breaks when
playing. The lack of formal observation facilitated an informal learning environment
where the participants were asked to play as they usually do when engaging in online
games. The researcher was also available in-game to provide assistance if needed and
updated the participants on the stages of data collection by email to ensure a smooth
transition from the beginning to the end.
31
4.0 Findings
This chapter presents detailed results from the vocabulary pre- and post-tests of
the three participants as well as a discussion of the most significant and relevant data
from the semi-structured interviews (for a complete interview transcript see Appendix
8.5.1). The chapter also attempts to answer the research questions by critically
evaluating the findings in comparison with previous research from the fields of
incidental vocabulary acquisition and online gaming.
4.1 Research question 1: To what extent does the number of ingame word exposure frequency in quest texts facilitate the
comprehension of incidental vocabulary?
Table 3 below summarises the individual improvement of participants categorised
by word exposure frequency (ranges 1-4, 5-7, 8-14 and 15+). Due to the uneven
number of vocabulary items per range (particularly the mid-ranges as presented in
Table 2), the averages shown in percentage are not representative and cannot be
generalised. However, for the three players overall, the 15+ range demonstrates a
43%, while the 1-4 range a 40% improvement in the post-tests. This can be concluded
due to these two ranges having an almost equal amount of vocabulary items. For
example, Wajis excelled on the post-test in the 15+ frequency range with an
improvement of 80%, however, had 0% improvement in the 1-4 range. On the other
hand, Kimkimkim showed no improvement in the 15+ range while he had a surprising
100% improvement in the 1-4 frequency range, which is known to be more difficult to
acquire (Pigada and Schmitt, 2006; Brown et al., 2008; Schmitt, 2010). Finally,
Magekrasus had a solid 50% improvement in the 15+ frequency range and 20% in the
1-4 range in his post-test.
32
Table 3. Unknown and acquired vocabulary items according to word exposure frequency ranges
As the overall data from Table 3 shows, the highest average improvement of
vocabulary acquisition occurred in items from the word exposure frequency range 8-14
(67%). While this is in line with previous studies (Horst et al., 1998; Waring and Takaki,
2003), due to the low number of items, it is not reliable data. Notably, the 15+ range
showed 43% and the 1-4 range 40% improvement rate on average. The results from
the 15+ range were expected and are in line with previous research on IVA. For
example, Wu and Xu (2006) argued that 14-17 exposures were needed for successful
IVA; Brown et al. (2008) confirmed that 15-20 exposures, whereas Kweon and Kim
(2008) found that ≥20 exposures showed the highest retention rates. Furthermore,
Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt (2010) also found that 10-17 exposures produced the
33
highest retention rate after extensive reading. Additionally, Pigada and Schmitt’s (2006)
findings concur with the current data: they showed solid improvement starting at 10+
exposures. All the above data support the theory of word exposure frequency
increasing the possibility of noticing and processing new vocabulary as well as the
chance of an initial memory trace to be retained, then strengthened due to repetitions
of the items (Schmitt, 2010; Rott, 2012; Zhu, 2015).
Furthermore, even though most studies on word exposure frequency suggest that
minimum 6-8 occurrences are needed for successful acquisition (Horst et al., 1998;
Waring and Takaki, 2003; Brown et al., 2008; Pellicer-Sánchez and Schmitt, 2010), the
current study seems to support the 1-4 exposure frequency range as well. Overall,
there is an average of 40% improvement from this range, which was not expected. The
data from Table 3 suggest that, as per Pellicer-Sánchez’s eye-tracking study’s
recommendation of 3-4 exposures for faster reading, both successful recognition of
word form and comprehension of meaning occurred in the 1-4 exposure frequency
range. This might be due to the fact that the players were required to understand the
new items to progress their questing and levelling in-game. It is also possible that they
interacted with these words due to the quests specifically mentioning them. Therefore,
the idea of an interactive multimodal environment facilitating IVA seems to support
Yang and Wu’s (2015) research, whose participants also preferred this type of
environment. Their results showed improvement when the interactive multimodal
environment was used versus the non-interactive one.
However, only one participant (Kimkimkim) managed to provide the correct
answers to the three items belonging to the 1-4 exposure frequency range in the posttest: brook, pathway, road; and one other participant (Magekrasus) answered pathway
correctly. As the interviews also confirmed, the screenshots for pathway and road were
somewhat dark, the images difficult to distinguish and the meaning of the two words
quite similar. Nevertheless, the participant, who was new to WoW (Kimkimkim), might
have paid more attention to these as he was in an unfamiliar and potentially dangerous
environment. This supports Schmidt’s (1990) Noticing Hypothesis, according to which
only important or necessary items will be noticed by the learners. Magekrasus might
have learnt pathway by chance or guessed the answer as him and Wajis were already
comfortable and familiar with Elwynn Forest: therefore, they did not necessarily have to
know the meaning of the three words from the 1-4 word exposure frequency range.
Instead, they probably used the map to orientate themselves and did not need the
vocabulary to progress their questing. However, it is noteworthy to say that both of
them still attempted an answer in the post-test. This finding suggests that new players
might be more careful and attentive in a game environment, a finding which might
warrant further research.
34
Moreover, the semi-structured interviews support the above data. For example,
when asked whether the participants noticed words that were repeated frequently, they
all answered affirmatively. They were also asked if the repetitions might have helped
them in remembering new words, to which they also replied positively. Finally, each of
them provided examples when prompted: Magekrasus remembered goblin, Wajis
vineyard and Kimkimkim pathway, road, farm and even others that were not included in
the tests, such as caster, spider and quest – the latter was actively used in his replies,
seemingly with ease. This is quite remarkable as interviews were held 6-7 days after
game-play, except for Wajis whose interview was 2 days after game play due to a
forthcoming trip. While this was an interesting finding, prompting for examples was
merely a side question in the interview as measuring and analysing active recall of
vocabulary was not the aim of the current study (see Appendix 8.5).
The above findings from the vocabulary tests and interviews indicate a positive
answer to research question 1: that is, both low and high word exposure frequency is
likely to facilitate incidental vocabulary acquisition and comprehension from game-play,
although their extent may vary from player to player. Additionally, it should be pointed
out here that the test items measure only initial receptive learning, thus, the findings
are inconclusive.
4.2 Research question 2: To what extent does the interaction
with the game environment through visual representations of
creatures and locations assist with the comprehension of
incidental vocabulary from game-play?
In exercise I., players had to choose an image (out of 3) and match it to a given
vocabulary item in ten seconds in order to test their interaction with visual
representations of creatures in-game. The results from exercise I. (Table 4)
consistently show improvement for two participants: Magekrasus had +3, Wajis had +4
correct answers, while Kimkimkim had -1 correct answer and surprisingly, +4 incorrect
answers. These data mean an improvement from 28.57% to 71.42% for Magekrasus
and 28.57% to 85.71% for Wajis, both of whom were familiar with WoW. On the other
hand, Kimkimkim, who was new to the game, showed a decrease from 57.14% to
42.85%. This might be due to the unfamiliar creatures and new vocabulary pertaining
to a fantasy world he had not met before as the other two players showed clear
improvement for the same vocabulary items. His interview statement regarding this
exercise seems to support this reason: “in that time I can’t remember all these words in
one time I can only remember some of them”. He probably could not recall all the
35
vocabulary items related to creatures in WoW, which might be the reason for his
inconsistent answers in exercise I.
Nevertheless, the most significant observation is that all players provided an
answer for each vocabulary item in the post-test, unlike the pre-test (see Table 4). This
suggests that the players were probably certain or confident enough of their newfound
knowledge of the WoW creatures and were willing to risk answers related to these.
This finding supports Peterson (2010, 2012), Kongmee et al. (2011) and Rama et al.’s
(2012) argument for MMORPGs, including WoW, being “safe” learning environments
which encourage risk taking on the learners’ (players’) part.
Table 4. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise I.
In exercise II., the players were given a list of vocabulary items, from which they
had to choose the correct word and match it to a screenshot in ten seconds. This
exercise was testing the players’ interaction with visual representations of locations ingame. The data show a general improvement for Magekrasus (from 40% to 50%) and
Wajis (from 60% to 70%) and a surprising increase from 50% to 100% for Kimkimkim in
the post-tests (see Table 5). Magekrasus and Wajis had +1 correct answer in their
post-test while surprisingly, Kimkimkim had +5 correct answers in comparison to his
pre-test and no mistakes, which is contradictory to his results from exercise I. The two
most problematic vocabulary items were vineyard and brook as they were clearly
unknown to all players in the pre-test, but Wajis and Kimkimkim chose vineyard
correctly in the post-test; brook was correct only for Kimkimkim. The words road and
pathway were possibly confusing due to the accompanying screenshots being
somewhat dark and the meaning of the two words quite similar. However, both
Kimkimkim and Magekrasus managed to score them correctly. Kimkimkim also had the
highest incorrect answers in the pre-test (5 out of 10), but also the best, 100% correct
score (10 out of 10) in the post-test, which is a solid improvement.
36
Table 5. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise II.
Furthermore, during the interviews, all players acknowledged that seeing the
creatures and locations in-game was very helpful for understanding which animals they
had to slay or where they had to go to complete their quests. For example, Magekrasus
noted: “I create an image so I remember if I saw it”. Additionally, Wajis said that the
words from the quests “still exist in the real life so I could imagine and learn new words
and … how can I say practising and learning new words in the game”. Finally,
Kimkimkim as a new player confirmed that “for some words like farm or pathway, if you
can look at the picture in the game and you can have a picture to look in this way and
you may feel a little imperative (sic) about this word you may remind this word very
deeply (…) I can see this picture in this games so I maybe feel uhh, I can feel very
deep to remember this game, this word not game so I cannot forget this words”.
The above findings support previous research on multimodal environments where
verbal and non-verbal (especially visual) elements are combined to assist SLA in
general (Moreno and Mayer, 2007; Brown et al., 2008; Tight, 2010; Gee, 2007; Thorne
et al., 2012), however, none of these studies measured incidental vocabulary
acquisition. The study closest to the present research is Yang and Wu’s (2015) work on
vocabulary acquisition through four modalities, which suggests that the highest
improvement occurred when participants used a mixed modality based e-learning
system, MyEVA. This included verbal and non-verbal (visual/auditory) input as well as
the option of navigation or interaction with the system. The current study seems to
support Yang and Wu’s (2015) findings due to having a higher number of acquired
vocabulary items that are visually represented versus the non-visually represented
ones.
Additionally, the data from exercises I. and II. could be considered a novel finding
regarding incidental vocabulary acquisition from online games as there are no previous
37
studies known to the researcher conducted on this topic. It is very important to note
here that the players were actively interacting with the game environment, specifically
visual representations, when playing. This interaction seems to facilitate successful
IVA, thus suggesting a positive answer for research question 2: that is, visual
representations of creatures and locations are likely to assist with the comprehension
of incidental vocabulary from game-play. However, it should be reiterated here that the
test items only indicate initial learning, thus rendering the findings inconclusive. A
detailed comparison of results for visual versus non-visual vocabulary items will be
made in the next section after a presentation of the findings from exercises III. and IV.
4.3 Research question 3: To what extent does the interaction
with quest texts through in-game actions facilitate the
comprehension of incidental vocabulary?
At the time of writing, the researcher was not aware of any studies testing for the
effectiveness of quest texts through in-game actions on players’ incidental vocabulary
acquisition. Therefore, no point of comparison can be drawn with previous research.
Nevertheless, the researcher will attempt to provide evidence to answer research
question 3.
In exercise III., the players had to provide a synonym, word meaning or a sentence
to explain the vocabulary items given. Table 6 shows their results. As there was more
than one possible correct explanation, the researcher carefully considered each
answer and deemed that Wajis and Kimkimkim were 100% correct in both tests.
Magekrasus provided correct answers for 6 out of 8 words and could not answer 2 in
the pre-test, however, he tried to provide one new answer in the post-test, albeit
incorrectly. Nevertheless, he took the risk and was confident enough to attempt it. He
was also the only participant to write a sentence in the post-test (see Table 6, recruit).
38
Table 6. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise III.
It is even more noteworthy that both Wajis and Kimkimkim provided more
information in the form of different meanings or nuances to the vocabulary items.
These tend to be closely connected to the meanings used in WoW. For example,
Kimkimkim specified the meaning of receive by adding collect to his post-test alongside
get, which was his pre-test answer. Or, Wajis clarified the meaning of guard as defend
someone in his post-test in comparison with help someone to be save (sic) in his pretest. He also changed his explanation of reward from give something to
someone/respect to a more specific answer in the post-test: give prize. Interestingly, to
explain reward, Kimkimkim also specified his answer further: from the gift I can get
from finishing sth., he changed it to sth. received for award someone (sic). Another,
more specific example is Kimkimkim’s explanation of award: he rewrote his pre-test
answer of to give something to someone and changed it: to appreciate someone by
something. Additionally, he also changed the meaning of search from look at (sic) or
find something to find/explore. All of the above explanations of word meaning from the
post-test were probably written under the influence of questing in WoW as they seem
to pertain to the game environment, which supports the research of Thorne et al.
39
(2012), whereby quests are a significant element of game-play. Wajis seems to confirm
this when stating “actually I'm not sure, just maybe I got more clear… clearer with those
words” – he probably means through questing or playing the game. Another reason for
the change in answers might be as suggested by Kimkimkim. In the interview, he
stated “I thought you may expect different results, so I don’t want to give the same
answers to you”.
In exercise IV., the players had to choose one answer from a multiple choice of 3
(see Table 7). Both Wajis and Kimkimkim had a flawless score in both tests;
Magekrasus did not know the meaning of compensation and extinguish in the pre-test,
however, he attempted both in the post-test.
Table 7. Pre- and post-test results of all participants: Exercise IV.
Both answers were incorrect (see nr. 4 in Table 7), but it is noteworthy to mention that
during the post-test, the player imitated the motion of extinguishing a fire (which was
included in one of the first quests in Elwynn Forest). This suggests that he now
possibly knew what the action represented, but not the synonym put out, which was
given in the multiple choice test. This was also confirmed by the interview, where he
confidently stated that extinguish means “to put something down (…) put something
clean” (sic). He might have understood the action pertaining to the word, but could not
40
provide the correct synonym or explanation for it. Nevertheless, it is noteworthy to point
out that this participant attempted to answer even the unknown words, which seems to
support the idea of online games as safe learning environments where players are
willing to take risks (Peterson, 2010, 2012; Zheng et al., 2012; Rama et al., 2012).
Another explanation could be that he might have felt pressured to perform better on the
post-test, however, he did not confirm this in the interview when prompted.
In addition, all players confirmed that reading the quests assisted them in playing
the game. Kimkimkim and Magekrasus admitted some frustration at the start, but they
both adapted very quickly to the English texts. All players stated that, in general, they
enjoyed playing WoW. To support the findings from the vocabulary tests, Magekrasus
added that “when you play it you study some English words you that don’t know and
you can remember it easier than you just to read some books”. Wajis admitted “before I
played the game I was not sure, after I went through the game and I finish all the quest
and I think I get familiar with those words”. Kimkimkim was somewhat concerned that
not all the vocabulary was useful in real life, however, he stated “I need to understand
the quest at first exactly it’s English so of course this can help me to improve my
English understanding”, as well as “maybe when you can talk with your friends it also
can help you improve your spoken English”. Both Wajis and Kimkimkim elaborated on
the fact that playing WoW would probably be beneficial for their language skills, but at
the same time, they would rather play with native speaker players in order to improve
their English since they have previous experience of playing computer games where
they frequently communicated with their foreign friends. They considered the social
factor quite important in this regard, which is an additional finding of the current study.
As a final step, the results of visual and non-visual representations of vocabulary
items need to be compared in detail in order to establish which ones were more
effective in the case of the three participants. Overall, Table 8 highlights the visually
represented vocabulary items in yellow and the non-visually represented ones in bold
text for each participant. Wajis and Kimkimkim knew all the non-visual items in both
tests. However, Magekrasus did not know 4 non-visually represented vocabulary items
in the pre-test: award, guard, compensation and extinguish. He did not provide correct
answers for them in the post-test, which suggests that acquisition has not occurred. In
the case of extinguish, he imitated the action during the post-test, but marked the
wrong answer. Therefore, the number of correct answers for visually represented items
outweighs the non-visual ones in his case.
41
Table 8. Individual improvement of visually (yellow) and non-visually (bold) represented vocabulary
items
Therefore, the above findings cannot provide an affirmative answer to research
question 3, as most non-visual vocabulary items (including words representing actions
from quests) were already known by the participants in the pre-test or showed no
improvement in the case of four specific vocabulary items. Additionally, as the definition
of “in-game actions” tends to be quite broad, it is difficult to determine whether these
could have facilitated incidental vocabulary comprehension.
42
4.4 Findings: final totals from vocabulary tests
As seen from Table 9, each player has an overall improved score in the post-test
compared with the pre-test. The highest improvement belongs to Wajis (13.51%),
followed closely by Magekrasus (10.82%) and Kimkimkim (10.81%). Even though there
was a general improvement in all three cases, the results cannot be generalised due to
a number of limitations, which will be presented next.
Table 9. Final total results from pre- and post-tests of all participants
5.0
Conclusion
5.1 Limitations of the study
Inevitably, there are a number of limitations to the current study. The sample size
(3 participants) and the time spent in-game were low (2-4 hours), therefore, the data
cannot be generalised to a larger population. However, the findings support previous
research studies conducted on gaming and SLA, where most participants felt that
learning had taken place to a certain extent during game-play (Peterson, 2010;
Kongmee et al., 2011; Rama et al., 2012). At the same time, it is important to keep in
mind that IVA differs from player to player and is greatly influenced by both internal and
external factors (Schmidt, 2010), which could not be covered in their entirety here.
Furthermore, only one area of the MMORPG World of Warcraft was included in the
study (human area, Elwynn Forest) – where the quest texts consisted of merely 5,395
words. In order to expand the amount of input, during the design stage of the
vocabulary tests, all quests from the blood elf starting area (Eversong Woods) were
also collated. They added up to 11,325 words. However, this amount was considered
43
too large for 2-4 hours of game-play, therefore, the quests from this area were not
included in the current study.
Even though the findings show general improvement for all three participants, their
newfound vocabulary knowledge was only tested for short-term memory as there was
no possibility for a follow-up test 2-4 weeks after game-play. Therefore, vocabulary
knowledge might have undergone attrition as time passed (as shown by Waring and
Takaki, 2003; Kweon and Kim, 2008), especially if they did not continue playing WoW.
However, attrition does not necessarily lead to complete elimination of lexical
knowledge, which tends to inherently be in a state of flux (Schmidt, 2010:23).
Additionally, as the interviews show, the participants seemed confident that even a
brief period of game-play has helped them learn new vocabulary, and that if they could
continue, more vocabulary would be acquired.
Finally, even though the researcher originally planned to monitor the participants’
game-play and IVA for a minimum of 1 month, this was not possible due to time
restrictions, the players’ schedules and the lack of resources (for example, a monthly
subscription to WoW). A longitudinal study with follow-up post-tests would have been
more reliable as there has been a call for such studies by many researchers (Schmitt,
2010; Nation and Webb, 2011; Coxhead and Bytheway, 2015), and it could have
produced more reliable data, including measurement of attrition rate.
5.2 Implications and suggestions for future research
This study has attempted to measure to what extent incidental vocabulary
acquisition (IVA) can occur while playing the MMORPG World of Warcraft for
approximately 2-4 hours at the participants’ own leisure in order to simulate their usual
game-play experience. Even though the findings are inconclusive, they suggest that
even in a short span of time incidental vocabulary acquisition can occur when playing
an online game with rich meaning-focused input (Nation’s first strand). Word
exposure frequency and images related to concepts through questing in-game can
facilitate incidental vocabulary acquisition at least at the initial receptive stage of
learning, as shown by the results. Therefore, it is recommended that learners of a
second language (in this case, English), who prefer using more interactive media for
entertainment, should be actively encouraged to choose and play an MMORPG that
suits their personal interests. It is highly likely that not only their motivation levels to
understand and learn new vocabulary from the game will increase (Juul, 2005; Yee,
2006; Sykes and Reinhardt, 2013), but they will also use their newfound knowledge
with other players in order to be able to successfully advance and enjoy their gameplay (Coxhead and Bytheway, 2015).
44
Even though it was mentioned that transferability of certain low-frequency
vocabulary (e.g. gnoll, garrison, gryphon, kobold, murloc, prowler) related to the
fantasy world of WoW may be inadequate for language learners, the game has rich
comprehensible input of a large amount of vocabulary that could be actively used even
in their daily lives (e.g. explore, discover, collect, deliver, vineyard, bridge, pathway,
road). Furthermore, successful learning experiences through game-play could become
“a booster” for the learners to engage in further activities or raise their motivation levels
(Chik, 2015:82; Bytheway, 2015). Future studies could undertake measuring which
words originating from the game are met and used actively by the participants in their
everyday life.
Another important implication of the current study could be the introduction of
homework or perhaps even classroom activities to engage second language learners in
a similar type of game-play, either for the purposes of vocabulary acquisition or
language practice, where they would be compelled to continuously use the new
vocabulary in the process of learning. This might be a novelty to many; it could even
cause frustration at the start to some (similarly to this study’s participants). However,
the learners are expected to overcome this challenge sooner or later, especially if they
were undertaking “adventures” together. As all incidental learning needs subsequent
practice and engagement with the newly acquired knowledge (Dörnyei, 2009; Schmitt,
2010; Nation and Webb, 2011), tutors could reinforce it through in-class explanations
and exercises. Moreover, it is highly likely that learners would notice a significant
number of the structures they meet in-game also in real life, for example, when
studying in a formal environment.
Furthermore, it is recommended that in-depth longitudinal vocabulary studies be
conducted in the context of online games with a large (100+) number of second
language learners in order to provide generalisable data. Additionally, future studies
could focus not only on meaning-focused input and its comprehension, but also the
players’ meaning-focused output and fluency (Nation’s Four Strands, 2007), thus
covering not only receptive, but also productive knowledge at the same time (Laufer
and Goldstein, 2004).
This study has shown that incidental vocabulary acquisition from playing the
MMORPG WoW can successfully occur even in a brief period of game-play. However,
the knowledge acquired by the players is probably fragile, therefore it needs additional
game-play and practice to be strengthened. Nevertheless, the findings suggest that
playing WoW might be a viable way to acquire new vocabulary incidentally.
45
6.0 Bibliography
Barchard, K.A. 2003. Ethics in on-line data collection. In: The Western Psychological
Association Annual Convention. Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, 2 May 2003.
Blizzard, Inc. 2016. Blizzard Entertainment, [online] Available at:
<http://eu.blizzard.com/en-gb/games/> [Accessed 21 December 2015].
Brown, R., Waring, R. and Donkaewbua, S. 2008. Incidental vocabulary acquisition
from reading, reading-while-listening, and listening to stories. Reading in a Foreign
Language, 20(2), pp. 136-163.
Bytheway, J. 2015. A taxonomy of vocabulary learning strategies used in massively
multiplayer online role-playing games. CALICO Journal, 32(3), pp. 508-527.
Carter, S.M. and Little, M. 2007. Justifying Knowledge, Justifying Method, Taking
Action: Epistemologies, Methodologies, and Methods in Qualitative Research.
Qualitative Health Research. 17(10), pp. 1316-1328.
Chik, A. 2011. Learner autonomy development through digital gameplay. Digital
Culture and Education, 3(1), pp. 30-45.
Chik, A. 2013. Naturalistic CALL and Digital Gaming. TESOL Quarterly, 47(4), pp. 834839.
Chik, A. 2015. “I don't know how to talk basketball before playing NBA 2K10”: using
digital games for out-of-class language learning. In: Nunan, D. and Richards, J.C., eds.
2015. Language learning beyond the classroom. New York: Routledge. pp. 75-84.
Chik, A. 2016. Digital gaming and language learning: Autonomy and community.
Language Learning & Technology, 18(2), pp. 85–100.
Cornillie, F., Thorne, S.L. and Desmet, P. 2012. ReCALL special issue: Digital games
for language learning: challenges and opportunities. ReCALL, 24(3), [online] Available
at: <
http://journals.cambridge.org/action/displayAbstract?fromPage=online&aid=8699371&fi
leId=S0958344012000134> [Accessed 21 December 2015].
Coxhead, A. and Bytheway, J. 2015. Learning Vocabulary Using Two Massive Online
Resources: You Will Not Blink. In: Nunan, D. and Richards, J.C., eds. 2015. Language
learning beyond the classroom. New York: Routledge. pp. 65-74.
Crawford, G., Gosling, V.K. and Lights, B. 2011. Online gaming in Context – The social
and cultural significance of online games. London: Routledge.
Darlaston-Jones, D. 2007. Making connections: The relationship between epistemology
and research methods. The Australian Community Psychologist, 19(1), pp. 19-26.
Dickey, M.D. 2007. Game design and learning: a conjectural analysis of how massively
multiple online role-playing games (MMORPGs) foster intrinsic motivation. Education
Tech Research Dev., 55, pp. 253-273.
Dörnyei, Z. 1998. Motivation in second and foreign language learning. Language
Teaching, 31(3), pp. 117-135.
Dörnyei, Z. 2007. Research methods in applied linguistics: Quantitative, qualitative and
mixed methodologies. Oxford: OUP.
46
Dörnyei, Z. 2009. The psychology of second language acquisition. Oxford: OUP.
Ellis, R. 2002. Second Language Acquisition. Oxford: OUP.
Gamepedia, 2016. Gamewiki. [online] Available at:
<www.wow.gamepedia.com/Elwynn_Forest_storyline> [Accessed 30 March 2016].
Gee, J.P. 2007. What video games have to teach us about learning and literacy. New
York: Palgrave MacMillan.
Goldkuhl, G. 2012. Pragmatism vs interpretivism in qualitative information systems
research. European Journal of Information Systems, (21)2, pp. 135-146.
Hammersley, M. and Traianou, A., 2012. Ethics and Educational Research, British
Educational Research Association, [online] Available at: <https://www.bera.ac.uk/wpcontent/uploads/2014/02/Ethics-and-Educational-Research.pdf > [Accessed 13
January 2016].
Horst, M., Cobb, T. and Meara, P. 1998. Beyond A Clockwork Orange: Acquiring
Second Language Vocabulary through Reading. Reading in a Foreign Language,
11(2), pp. 207-223.
Howe, K.R. and Moses, M.S. 1999. Ethics in educational research. Review of
Research in Education, 24, pp. 21-60.
Huckin, T. and Coady, J. 1999. Incidental vocabulary acquisition in a second language.
SSLA, 21, pp. 181-193.
Johnson, R.B., Onwuegbuzie, A.J. and Turner, L.A. 2007. Toward a Definition of Mixed
Methods Research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research, 1(2), pp. 112-133.
Juul, J. 2005. Half-Real: Video Games between Real Rules and Fictional Worlds,
Cambridge: MIT Press.
Kongmee, I., Strachan, R., Montgomery, C. and Pickard, A. 2011. Using massively
multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) to support second language
learning: Action research in the real and virtual world. In: 2nd Annual IVERG
Conference: Immersive technologies for Learning: virtual implementation, real
outcomes. Middlesborough, UK, 27-28 June 2011.
Kweon, S.O. and Kim, H.R. 2008. Beyond raw frequency: Incidental vocabulary
acquisition in extensive reading. Reading in a Foreign Language, 20(2), pp. 191-215.
Laufer, B. and Goldstein, Z. 2004. Testing Vocabulary Knowledge: Size, Strength, and
Computer Adaptiveness. Language Learning, 54(3), pp. 399-436.
Lee, J. J., & Hoadley, C. 2007. Leveraging Identity to Make Learning Fun: Possible
Selves and Experiential Learning in Massively Multiplayer Online Games (MMOGs).
Innovate, 3(6), [online] Available at:
http://hypermedia468.pbworks.com/w/file/fetch/82076390/Lee%2520%2526%2520Hoa
dley%25202007%2520IJOE%2520Identity,%2520experiential%2520learning,%2520en
gagement,%2520motivation,%2520MMOGs%2520copy.pdf [Accessed 21 December
2015].
Lichtman, M. 2010. Qualitative Research in Education – A User’s Guide. 2nd ed.
London: SAGE.
47
Mason, J. 2006. Mixing methods in a qualitatively driven way. Qualitative Research,
6(1), pp. 9-25.
Mawer, K. and Stanley, G. 2011. Digital Play – Computer games and language aims.
Surrey: DELTA Publishing.
Mayoh, J. and Onwuegbuzie, A.J. 2015. Toward a Conceptualization of Mixed Methods
Phenomenological Research. Journal of Mixed Methods Research. 9(1), pp. 91-107.
Moreno, R. and Mayer, R. 2007. Interactive Multimodal Learning Environments. Educational
Psychology Review, 19, pp. 309-326.
Nagy, W.E., Herman, P. A. and Anderson, R.C. 1985. Learning Words from Context. Reading
Research Quarterly, 29(2), pp. 233-253.
Nagy, W.E., Anderson, R.C. and Herman, P.A. 1987. Learning Word Meanings From
Context During Normal Reading. American Educational Research Journal, 24(2), pp.
237-270.
Nardi, B.A. 2010. My Life as a Night Elf Priest – An Anthropological Account of World
of Warcraft. Michigan: The University of Michigan Press.
Nation, I.S.P. 1990. Teaching and Learning Vocabulary. New York: Newbury House.
Nation, I.S.P. 2001. Learning Vocabulary in Another Language. Cambridge: CUP.
Nation, I.S.P. 2007. The four strands. International Journal of Innovation in Language
Learning and Teaching, 1(1), pp. 2-13.
Nation, I.S.P. 2008. Teaching Vocabulary: Strategies and Techniques. Boston: Heinle.
Nation, I.S.P. 2011. Research into practice: Vocabulary. Language Teaching, 44(4),
pp. 529-539.
Nation, I.S.P. 2014. How much input do you need to learn the most frequent 9,000
words? Reading in a Foreign Language, 26(2), pp. 1-16.
Nation, I.S.P. and Webb, S. 2011. Researching and Analyzing Vocabulary. Boston:
Heinle.
Oxford, R. and Crookall, D. 1990. Vocabulary Learning: A Critical Analysis of
Techniques. TESL Canada Journal, 7(2), pp. 9-30.
Oxford, R. 2003. Language Learning Styles and Strategies: an overview – PhD paper.
Pellicer-Sánchez, A. and Schmitt, N. 2010. Incidental vocabulary acquisition from an
authentic novel: Do Things Fall Apart?. Reading in a Foreign Language, 22(1), pp. 3155.
Pigada, M. and Schmitt, N. 2006. Vocabulary acquisition from extensive reading: A
case study. Reading in a Foreign Language, 18(1), pp. 1-28.
Peterson, M. 2010. Massively multiplayer online role-playing games as arenas for
second language learning. Computer Assisted Language Learning, 23(5), pp. 429-439.
Peterson, M. 2012. Learner interaction in a massively multiplayer online role playing
game (MMORPG): A sociocultural discourse analysis. ReCALL, 24(3), pp. 361-380.
Prensky, M. 2001. Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants Part 1. On the Horizon, 9(5), pp.
1-6.
48
Rama, P.S., Black, R.W., van Es, E. and Warschauer, M. 2012. Affordances for second
language learning in World of Warcraft. ReCALL, 24(3), pp. 322-338.
Rankin, Y.A., Gold, R. and Gooch, B. 2006. 3D Role-Playing Games as Language
Learning Tools. Eurographics, 25(3), [online] Available at:
<https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266883764_3D_RolePlaying_Games_as_Language_Learning_Tools> [Accessed 21 December 2015].
Rankin, Y.A., Gold, R. and Gooch, B., 2006. Evaluating Interactive Gaming as a
Language Learning Tool. In Proceedings for ACM SIGGRAPH Conference, [online]
Available at: <http://www.langwidge.com/studies/a44-rankin.pdf> [Accessed 21
December 2015].
Rott, S. 2012. Incidental Vocabulary Acquisition. In: The Encyclopedia of Applied
Linguistics, [online] Available at:
<http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/9781405198431> [Accessed 4 April 2016].
Ryu, D. 2013. Play to Learn, Learn to Play: Language Learning through Gaming
Culture. ReCALL, 25(2), pp. 286-301.
Saville-Troike, M. 2012. Introducing Second Language Acquisition. New York: CUP.
Schmidt, R. 1990. The Role of Consciousness in Second Language Learning. Applied
Linguistics, 11(2), pp.129-158.
Schmidt, R. 2010. Attention, awareness, and individual differences in language
learning. In: Chan, W. M., Chi, S., Cin, K. N., Istanto, J., Nagami, M., Sew, J. W.,
Suthiwan, T. and Walker, I. Proceedings of CLaSIC 2010, Singapore, December 2-4
2010. Singapore: National University of Singapore, Centre for Language Studies, pp.
721-737.
Schmitt, N. & McCarthy, M. 1997. Vocabulary: Description, acquisition and pedagogy.
Cambridge, UK: Cambridge University Press.
Schmitt, N. 2010. Researching vocabulary: a vocabulary research manual. Palgrave
Macmillan.
Schrader, P.G. and Lawless, K.A. 2010. The Hidden Literacies of Massively Multiplayer
Online Games. In: Pullen, D.L., Gitsaki, C. and Baguley, M., eds. 2010. Technoliteracy,
Discourse and Social Practice: Frameworks and Applications in the Digital Age. New
York: IGI Global.
Schwandt, T.A. 2000. Three epistemological stances for qualitative inquiry:
Interpretivism, hermeneutics and social constructionism. In: Denzin, N.K. and Lincoln,
Y.S., 2000. Handbook of Qualitative Research. SAGE.
Sechrest, L. and Sidani, S. 1995. Quantitative and qualitative methods: Is There an
Alternative? Evaluation and Program Planning, 18(1), pp. 77-87.
Sharp, J.G. 2012. Success with your Education Research Project. 2nd ed. London:
SAGE.
Skehan, P. 1998. A cognitive approach to language learning. Oxford: OUP.
Steinkuehler, C. A. 2004. Learning in massively multiplayer online games. In Kafai,
Y.B., Sandoval, W. A., Enyedy, N., Nixon, A. S. and Herrera, F., eds., Proceedings of
the Sixth International Conference of the Learning Sciences. Mahwah, NJ: Erlbaum,
pp. 521–528.
49
Sydorenko, T. 2010. Modality of input and vocabulary acquisition. Language Learning
and Technology, 14(2), pp. 50-73.
Sylven, L.K. and Sundqvist, P. 2012. Gaming as extramural English L2 learning and L2
proficiency among young learners. ReCALL, 24(3), pp. 302-321.
Sykes, J.M. and Reinhardt, J. 2013. Language at Play – Digital games in second and
foreign language teaching and learning. Boston: Pearson.
Thorne, S.L., Black, R.W. and Sykes, J.M. 2009. Second Language Use, Socalization
and Learning in Internet Interest Communities and Online Gaming. The Modern
Language Journal, 93, Focus Issue, pp. 802-821.
Thorne, S.L., Fischer, I. and Lu, X. 2012. The semiotic ecology and linguistic
complexity of an online game world. ReCALL, 0(3), 279-301.
Thorne, S.L. and Fischer, I. 2012. Online Gaming as Sociable Media. ALSIC:
Apprentissage des Langues et Systèmes d’Information et de Communication, 15(1),
[online] Available at: <http://alsic.revues.org/2450> [Accessed 22 December 2015].
Tight, D.G. 2010. Perceptual Learning Style Matching and L2 Vocabulary Acquisition.
Language Learning, 60(4), pp. 792-833.
Walker Rettberg, J. 2008. Quests in World of Warcraft: Deferral and Repetition. In:
Corneliussen, H. and Walker Rettberg, J., eds. 2008. Digital Culture, Play, and Identity:
A World of Warcraft Reader, pp. 167-184.
Waring, R. and Takaki, M. 2003. At what rate do learners learn and retain new
vocabulary from reading a graded reader? Reading in a Foreign Language, 15, pp.
130–163.
Whippey, C. 2011. It's not all about the words: Non‐textual information in World of
Warcraft. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and
Technology, 48(1), pp.1-4.
Williams, D., Yee, N. and Caplan, S.E. 2008. Who plays, how much, and why?
Debunking the stereotypical gamer profile. Journal of Computer-Mediated
Communication, 13(4), pp. 993-1018.
Wu, M.L., Richards, K. and Saw, G.K. 2014. Examining a Massive Multiplayer Online
Role-Playing Game as a Digital Game-Based Learning Platform. Computers in the
Schools, 31:1-2, 65-83, [online] Available at:
<http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/07380569.2013.878975#.VqUAp_mLSbg
> [Accessed 21 December 2015].
Wu, W. and Xu, H. 2006. Effects of Frequency on Incidental Vocabulary Learning
through Reading. Journal of Chongqing University, 12(4), pp. 116-121.
Yang, F.O. and Wu, W.V. 2015. Using Mixed-Modality Learning Strategies via eLearning for Second Language Vocabulary Acquisition. International Forum of
Educational Technology and Society, 18(3), pp. 309-322.
Yee, N. 2006. Motivations of Play in MMORPGs – Results from a Factor Analytic
Approach, [online] Available at: <http://www.nickyee.com/daedalus/motivations.pdf>
[Accessed 22 December 2015].
Yee, N., 2009. Befriending ogres and wood-elves: Relationship formation and the
social architecture of Norrath. Game Studies, 9(1), [online] Available at:
<http://www.gamestudies.org/0901/articles/yee> [Accessed 22 December 2015].
50
Zheng, D., Newgarden, K. and Young, M.F. 2012. Multimodal analysis of language
learning in World of Warcraft play: Languaging as Values-realizing. ReCALL, 24(3), pp.
339-360.
Zheng, D., Bischoff, M. and Gilliland, B. 2015. Vocabulary learning in massively
multiplayer online games: context and action before words. Education Tech Research
Dev, 63, pp. 771-790.
Zhu, Y. 2015. Revisiting Word Exposure Frequency and Incidental Vocabulary
Acquisition. Theory and Practice in Language Studies, 5(5), pp. 968-973.
7.0 Appendices
7.1 Ethics application: approval and amendments
Ethics Committee for Non-Clinical Research Involving Human Subjects
Notification of Ethics Application Outcome – UG and PGT
Applications
Application Details
Application Type: PGT
CSS/SOE/2015/142
Application Number:
Applicant’s Name Anamaria Kinga Maior
Project
Title
An exploration of the MMORPG World of Warcraft as a tool for
facilitating incidental vocabulary acquisition
____________________________________________________________________________
Application Status
Approved – Pending Permissions (please see below)
Approved – No (further) Permissions Required
X
Not approved – Full Resubmission Required (please see overleaf)
Resubmission Rec’d
Note: Start and End Dates of Approval will only be given when ethical approval has been
granted and when all the relevant permissions have been received.
51
Start Date:
06/05/2016
End Date:
31/08/2021
____________________________________________________________________________
_______________
Permissions
Please find below the list of permissions that you MUST obtain and submit to the Ethics
Administrator before commencing with data collection. You can either provide a scanned copy
of the permission letters to: [email protected], or send a hard copy to: J. Turner
PGT Office St Andrew’s Building 11 Eldon Street Glasgow G3 6NH
Permission required from:
Received in Admin Office:
Language Centre
Received
Recommendations (where Changes are Required)

Where changes are required all applicants must respond in the relevant
boxes to the recommendations of the Committee and return to the Ethics Office
to explain the changes you have made to the application.

(If application is Rejected a full new application must be submitted by
returning to the Ethics Office. Where recommendations are provided, they
should be responded to and this document provided as part of the new
application.
(Shaded areas will expand as text is added)
MAJOR RECOMMENDATION OF THE COMMITTEE
APPLICANT RESPONSE TO MAJOR
RECOMMENDATIONS
MINOR RECOMMENDATION OF THE COMMITTEE
APPLICANT RESPONSE TO MINOR
RECOMMENDATIONS
1 Please spell out
abbreviation in title
An exploration of the Massively Multiplayer Online RolePlaying Game World of Warcraft as a tool for facilitating
incidental vocabulary acquisition
*********************************************************
2.1 Please
articulate briefly
what the research
approach is and
The research methodology and data collection include a pregame and post-game activity in small groups (depending on
participant numbers, see step 4) and individual game-play
done in the participants’ homes (see step 3). This project is
considered to be low risk because it does not involve any of
the high risk examples in lists 1-5 in the Risk Guidance
Document.
52
how it is low risk.
(The methodology
is explained in
detail later in the
form, but a brief
summary needs to
be provided to
justify classification
as low risk).
Step 1: possible fatigue caused by playing a computer game
(World of Warcraft)
Step 2: especially participants with limited gaming
experience might become fatigued while playing the game
Step 3: this research study is considered as low risk
because the participants will be playing the game in their
own homes, at their own leisure in a comfortable
environment known to them – and will be encouraged to
take breaks
Step 4: none of the game-play done in the participants’
leisure time will be recorded so they do not feel pressured;
the results of this research study consist of the participants’
answers from their pre-game and post-game activities which
will be conducted in a small group (5-8 participants) in the
University Library, a familiar environment
Step 5: the risk assessment has been reviewed and updated.
************************************************************************
Duration/time:
Sequence
of stages
Plain Language
Statement: This is
a quite intensive
study for the
participants.
Therefore it is
particularly
appropriate that the
PLS clearly states
what sort of time
commitment this is
likely to involve and
that it is clear that
participants can
discontinue the
study at any point.
Stages of data
collection
Duration
Location
Stage 1.
1. Pre-game
activity
20
minutes
University
Library,
study
room
Stage 2.
2. Game-play
(with breaks
if you wish)
Between
2-4
hours
Your
home, at
your own
pace
Stage 3.
3. Post-game
activity
15
minutes
University
Library,
study
room
Stage 4.
4. Interview
20
minutes
Face-toface or
over
53
Skype
1. You will be able to choose a time that is most convenient
for you.
2. Individual game-play in your own home using your PC or
laptop, with as many breaks as you wish.
3. A post-game activity in the University Library within 24
hours after game-play is finished.
4. A face-to-face or online interview in the University library
or over Skype. This interview will be audio-recorded
(within 1 week after the post-test).
Voluntary participation:
Your participation in this study is voluntary. It is up to you to
decide whether or not to take part in this study. If you decide to
participate, you will be asked to sign a consent form. After you
sign the consent form, you can still stop taking part in this
research study at any time without giving a reason. If you
withdraw from the study before data collection is completed, your
personal data will not be used in the study and it will be
destroyed.
REVIEWER COMMENTS
APPLICANT RESPONSE TO
REVIEWER COMMENTS
(OTHER THAN SPECIFIC RECOMMENDATIONS)
The ethics application is very thorough and
clearly written.
Please retain this notification for future reference. If you have any queries please do
not hesitate to contact Jennifer Turner, Ethics administrative contact for UG and PGT
Applications: [email protected]
End of Notification.
College Research Ethics
Request for Amendments - Reviewer Feedback
Ethics Committee for Non-Clinical Research Involving Human Subjects
____________________________________________________________________________
_________________________
Application Details
Undergraduate Student Research Ethics Application
Research Ethics Application
Application Number:
☐
Postgraduate Taught Student
X
CSS/SOE/2015/142
54
Applicant’s Name:
Anamaria Kinga Maior
Project Title:
An exploration of the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing
Game World of Warcraft as a tool for facilitating incidental vocabulary acquisition
Original Date of Application Approval:
06/05/2016
Date of Amendments Approved:
31/05/2016
Outcome:
Amendments Approved
____________________________________________________________________________
Reviewer Comments
Amendment approved for change in recruitment. Please note that relevant permission will be
required.
Permission from John Briggs received - 02/06/2016. Amendment approved and permission
granted.
7.2 Call for Participants: Pamphlet (see Request for Amendments
above)
Looking for students to take part in a research study:
1. Do you love online games?
2. Have you played some before?
3. Is your IELTS Reading 5.5?
If you answered YES to all of the above, then I’d like to
invite you to take part in a research study on playing
computer games!
Please contact: [email protected]
Thank you!
55
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
[email protected]
Online games study
7.3 Consent form
Title of Project: An exploration of the Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing
Game World of Warcraft as a tool for facilitating incidental vocabulary acquisition
Name of Researcher:
Anamaria Kinga Maior
1. I confirm that I have read and understand the Plain Language Statement for the
above study and have had the opportunity to ask questions.
2. I understand that my participation is voluntary and that I am free to withdraw at
any time, without giving any reason.
3. I understand that the interview will be audio-recorded.
4. I understand that any information recorded in the investigation will be made and
kept anonymous and will remain confidential and no information that identifies
me will be made publicly available
5. I understand that I can contact the researcher for this project by e-mail to
receive more information.
I agree / do not agree (delete as applicable) to take part in the above study.
Name of Participant
Date
Signature
Date
Signature
Anamaria Kinga Maior
Researcher
56
7.4 Participant Guidelines
Dear Participant,
Please see the guidelines below. They were written to help you step by step during the
research study on World of Warcraft. If you have any questions, please contact me by
email ([email protected]).
 Create an account at: https://eu.battle.net/account/creation/wow/signup/ no credit card details needed (free to play up to level 20)
 Download and install World of Warcraft on your PC or laptop at least 2
days before Friday, 20th May, 2016.
 Pre-game activity in Room 101, Anderson Building (C1 on campus map:
http://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_1887_en.pdf) on Friday, 20th May @
5.00 pm.
 Game-play: login the game, make a human character and do all quests
in Elwynn Forest (try to finish by late evening on the 22nd May, 2016)
 Post-game activity in Room 101, Anderson Building (C1 on campus map:
http://www.gla.ac.uk/media/media_1887_en.pdf) on Monday, 23rd May @
5.00 pm.
 Interview in the University Library or over Skype (date and times to be
chosen by you)
Please do not start playing the game before our meeting on the 20th of May, 2016!
When we meet, I will give you more details on what to do and how to contact me if
there are any problems.
Finally, when you finish all the quests in Elwynn Forest, please do not continue
questing in Westfall or another area. After the post-game activity (Monday, 23rd May,
2016), you can continue playing as much as you wish.
Thank you very much for your time and help!
A. Kinga Maior
MEd TESOL, School of Education
University of Glasgow
57
7.5 Vocabulary tests
7.5.1 Vocabulary pre-test
Pre-game activity
20 mins.
Participant’s pseudonym (in-game character’s name): ________________
Date ___________
**Note: all vocabulary items from this activity are related to and taken from the MMORPG World
of Warcraft. You are free to explain the words based on your knowledge of the game or your
everyday knowledge of English from the real world. Try not to guess the answers if you do
not know them. For this research, it is very important that you give an honest answer. Keep in
mind that there are no right or wrong answers. Thank you!
Exercise I. Match the pictures with the words (names) provided! Write the answer on
the line – only one correct answer is possible.
Example: mana wyrm (picture on PPT)
Answer: B___
1. ______
2. ______
3. ______
4. ______
5. ______
6. ______
7. ______
58
Exercise II. Read the words you were given and match them with the numbers! They
usually refer to locations or places in the game.
Example: look at the screenshot, choose a word (or words), write the correct number
next to the word(s)
Answer: garrison
**you have 1 minute to read them before the screenshots appear**
example
Exercise III. Try to explain in your own words the meaning of the following vocabulary
items – or give a synonym (=> same meaning, different word) – or write a sentence
using the words. If you do not know them, leave the space blank.
Example: hero
a person considered brave by others (meaning)
a champion (synonym)
He became a hero in the war by saving others.
(sentence)
1. reward
_______________________________________
2. objective
_______________________________________
3. receive
_______________________________________
4. award
_______________________________________
5. volunteer
_______________________________________
59
6. recruit
_______________________________________
7. guard
_______________________________________
8. search
_______________________________________
Exercise IV. Circle one answer from the possibilities given.
Example: skim: I <skimmed> the text.
a. wrote it
b. cleaned it
c. read it over quickly
Answer: c.
1.
a.
b.
c.
investigate: A detective’s job is <to investigate> crimes.
to commit
to report on
to look into
2.
a.
b.
c.
compensation: Mary broke John’s car. He is now asking for <a compensation>.
a grand prize
a repayment
nothing
3.
a.
b.
c.
schedule: Everything went according to <schedule>.
shopping list
timetable
travel list
4.
a.
b.
c.
extinguish: The fire <was extinguished> with the help of the firefighters.
was cleaned
was put out
was fanned
5.
a.
b.
c.
threat: In winter, ice on the roads poses <a threat>.
a question
a danger
safety
6. starving: “I am <starving>! I haven’t eaten in 24 hours.”
a. crying
60
b. not hungry at all
c. very hungry
7.
a.
b.
c.
gather: My friend likes <gathering> flowers in the fields.
cutting
separating
picking
8.
a.
b.
c.
collect: “Could you <collect> a parcel for me tomorrow?”
send off
pick up
buy
9.
a.
b.
c.
situation: We have to deal with the current <situation> as soon as possible.
generation
problem
analysis
10. deliver: You have <to deliver> the pizzas before they get cold.
a. eat
b. bake
c. take to people’s houses
11. pie: My grandma bakes a delicious <pie>.
a. cake
b. a type of dessert
c. a type of salty snack
12. rest: It’s nice <to rest> after a long day of work.
a. to go running
b. to relax
c. to do the dishes
Thank you for your co-operation!
7.5.2 Vocabulary post-test
61
Post-game activity
15 mins.
Participant’s pseudonym (in-game character’s name): ________________
Date ___________
**Note: all vocabulary items from this activity are related to and taken from the MMORPG World
of Warcraft. You are free to explain the words based on your knowledge of the game or your
everyday knowledge of English from the real world. Try not to guess the answers if you do not
know them. For this research, it is very important that you give an honest answer. Keep in mind
that there are no right or wrong answers. Thank you!
Exercise I. Match the pictures with the words (names) provided! Write the answer on
the line – only one correct answer is possible.
Example: mana wyrm (picture on PPT)
Answer: B___
1. ______
2. ______
3. ______
4. ______
5. ______
6. ______
7. ______
Exercise II. Read the words you were given and match them with the numbers! They
usually refer to locations or places in the game.
62
Example: look at the screenshot, choose a word (or words), write the correct number
next to the word(s)
Answer: garrison
**you have 1 minute to read them before the screenshots appear**
example/0.
Exercise III. Try to explain in your own words the meaning of the following vocabulary
items – or give a synonym (=> same meaning, different word) – or write a sentence
using the words. If you do not know the word, leave the space blank.
Example: hero
a person considered brave by others (meaning)
a champion (synonym)
He became a hero in the war by saving others.
(sentence)
1. reward
_______________________________________
2. objective
_______________________________________
3. receive
_______________________________________
4. award
_______________________________________
63
5. volunteer
_______________________________________
6. recruit
_______________________________________
7. guard
_______________________________________
8. search
_______________________________________
Exercise IV. Circle one answer from the possibilities given.
Example: skim: I <skimmed> the text.
a. wrote it
b. cleaned it
c. read it over quickly
Answer: c.
1.
a.
b.
c.
investigate: A detective’s job is <to investigate> crimes.
to commit
to report on
to look into
2.
a.
b.
c.
compensation: Mary broke John’s car. He is now asking for <a compensation>.
a grand prize
a repayment
nothing
3.
a.
b.
c.
schedule: Everything went according to <schedule>.
shopping list
timetable
travel list
4.
a.
b.
c.
extinguish: The fire <was extinguished> with the help of the firefighters.
was cleaned
was put out
was fanned
5.
a.
b.
c.
threat: In winter, ice on the roads poses <a threat>.
a question
a danger
safety
6. starving: “I am <starving>! I haven’t eaten in 24 hours.”
64
a. crying
b. not hungry at all
c. very hungry
7.
a.
b.
c.
gather: My friend likes <gathering> flowers in the fields.
cutting
separating
picking
8.
a.
b.
c.
collect: “Could you <collect> a parcel for me tomorrow?”
send off
pick up
buy
9.
a.
b.
c.
situation: We have to deal with the current <situation> as soon as possible.
generation
problem
analysis
10. deliver: You have <to deliver> the pizzas before they get cold.
a. eat
b. bake
c. take to people’s houses
11. pie: My grandma bakes a delicious <pie>.
a. cake
b. a type of dessert
c. a type of salty snack
12. rest: It’s nice <to rest> after a long day of work.
a. to go running
b. to relax
c. to do the dishes
Thank you for your co-operation!
7.6
Interview
65
7.6.1 Interview questions
Interview questions (semi-structured interview, max. 20 minutes)
Participant’s pseudonym (in-game character’s name): ____________
Date________
Face-to-face
Online, over Skype
1. Did you enjoy playing WoW in English? Why/why not?
2. How do you think playing World of Warcraft or similar online games can help
you with learning new words?
3. Do you remember any new words from playing WoW?
3.1 If yes, please give an example and say what helped you to understand the
meaning of the new word.
4. Do you think playing the game made it easier for you to understand new words?
Why/why not?
4.1 Did you notice any words that were repeated many times during the game?
Could you give an example?
4.2 Did it help you to understand a word when you saw it many times while
playing? How?
4.3 How did connecting visuals from the game (for example, images of
locations or animals/creatures) help you to understand new words?
4.4 Do you think that reading the quest texts and doing the quests themselves
help you understand new words from the game? Why/why not?
7.6.2 Sample interview: Kimkimkim (15.05 minutes)
Note: Ithil is the name of the researcher’s in-game character; K stands for Kimkimkim
(the name of the participant’s in-game character)
Ithil: Can you tell me first, did you enjoy playing the game, World of Warcraft, in
English?
K: I enjoyed, but..you know I have no friends here, I have no international friends or
some friends in this game so I feel a little alone so I am not enjoy playing some games
by myself or alone, you know.
Ithil: Ahhh, absolutely, so yes and no.
K: I like playing computer games but I don't want to play games alone, so if I have
some...a lot of friends I like playing this game.
66
Ithil: So you would probably like it more if your friends were playing with you, right?
K: Yeah.
Ithil: That's really good to hear; and was it ok to play in English?
K: Yeah, I think it's ok, maybe at the beginning I feel a little upset, or frustrated, or a
little difficult to.. how to do something, but as I said if I have some friends they can tell
me; like you can tell me how to do something maybe I can feel it is very easy to start
with.
Ithil: Good, good ok. And... in general, how do you think that playing this game and
other online games can help you to learn new words? Or do you think that it can help?
K: Of course it can help - for some words like farm or pathway, if you can look at the
picture in the game and you can have a picture to look in this way and you may feel a
little imperative (?) about this word you may remind this word very deeply this is for
some maybe technical words.
Ithil: Yeah, like your spells, right?
K: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Ithil: Ah so you mean you can remember it?
K: Ye but it's not for the... yeah maybe when you can talk with your friends it also can
help you improve your spoken English, but for academic English i'm not sure.
Ithil: Not so much, perhaps. So I couldn't hear you so clearly before... so did you give
an example of a new word that you learned?
K: Yeah, pathway, or road, or farm - I can see this picture in this games so I maybe
feel... I can feel very deep to remember this game, this word not game... so I cannot
forget this words.
Ithil: That's really wonderful, that's good to hear! So, let me ask you a little bit about the
game and these vocabulary items. For example, when you were playing, did you notice
any words that were repeated many times?
K: Yeah, for example quest this is word was repeat again and again and some...maybe
some technical words like caster or some words how to say...a place, or spider, or
some other animals and I can see them again and again.
Ithil: So it was quite easy when you saw it many times to remember, right?
K: Yeah, but in that time I can't remember all these words in one time, I can only
remember some of them.
Ithil: Only some of them, yes, I think there was quite a lot happening.
K: And a lot of words I don't thinking I can used it in my life.
67
Ithil: Ahh, yes, that's the other, it's not very useful for real life, although some of them,
like the ones, you know receive and reward and recruit - all these, you know, are very
useful in real life as well.
But the creatures, like the worg and the boar not so much perhaps. Ok, cool! And when
you saw these creatures and the locations, then you realised that there is something
you have to do there right?
K: Yeah.
Ithil: Yeah the quest was sending you there, so you had to do something.
K: Yeah, so I need to understand the quest at first exactly... it's English so of course
this can help me to improve my English understanding.
Ithil: Yes, yes, I think you definitely read the quests and you wanted to know what to do
so that was really, really good... So you wanted to see the data, let me send you your
data so you can have a look at your results, they are very interesting, so let me send
you ... this is yours, you can accept.
K: I just download it within maybe a few seconds... how to open it?
Ithil: I think you have to double click.
K: Double click?
Ithil: Mhm.
K: Ok, I open.
Ithil: See?
K: What about your another participate, the Chinese guy?
Ithil: Ah yes, basically he also had interesting results...
K: Did you have a..did you have an interview with him?
Ithil: Yes, I had an interview as well, yes.
K: I mean have you do... have you done the interview with him?
Ithil: Yes.
K: Tonight?
Ithil: Ahh not today, he went back to China.
K: Ah, he went back to China?
Ithil: Yes, unfortunately, he's going home for the summer.
K: And how do you do this interview with him if he is in the China?
Ithil: No, no, it was on Monday, his interview was on Monday.
68
K: Oh I just looking at my... you sent me the...
Ithil: Your data, yeah, see...?
K: I can't know which data mine.
Ithil: Oh, it has... I sent you the one which says vocabulary results Kimkimkim, that
should be yours, right?
K: Oh, Kimkimkim! Exercise pre, exercise post...
Ithil: Yes, the pre- and the post-, so the first one and the second one, and you see it
was a bit difficult for you to know the creatures, because they are very new so
unfortunately...
K: Yeah.
Ithil: But you see it's very good that you tried everything! How come you tried all the
answers, that was very impressive, hmm? Do you remember why you chose all the
answers on Monday?
K: You mean the first?
Ithil: The post-.
K: The post- or pre-?
Ithil: Ahh the post-, you have more answers, see?
K: Yeah, here are some answers, but for the creature name I can't remember this.
Ithil: Ahh, it's ok but you tried - so that is very very good... it's an improvement as well and exercise 2, see, everything was correct, but not the first time - only the second
time!
K: Hmm, yeah.
Ithil: It's really perfect.
K: It's just that as me said... as my said ...as I said this some words like pathway or
some other things.
Ithil: Or brook, even more difficult! brook is actually a difficult one, so very very well
done, can I just ask you when you were writing the meanings of the words in exercise
3, see, yeah... you sometimes gave a different meaning which is very interesting, it's
more speciic - how come you decided to give a different answer on Monday than on
Friday?
K: Because I thought you may expect different results, so I don't want to give the same
answers to you...the same result is nonsense for you and for me.
Ithil: To be honest, it's even better, I think maybe in the game you saw for example see: to receive, see, you actually added collect - so it is even more specific.
K: Yeah, maybe...
69
Ithil: Or you said you want to achieve a goal or an aim - it's a bit longer as well and
even better than is something received for award - it's really good, yeah so that was
very interesting to see.
The last exercise was quite easy, so you knew everything obviously on Friday, so that
didn't show any changes.
K: Yeah.
Ithil: But see it's a very high percent.
K: Maybe next time you can change the vocabulary. Maybe more difficult vovcabulary.
This vocabulary is maybe a little simple for us.
Ithil: Mhm, it's very good that you knew most of them - but luckily not everything so
that's good! Ok, so that's very good to hear - that you wanted to try all the answers on
Monday. And see it's from 78% up to 89% and you answered every single question - all
of them, it's really good!
K: Yeah.
Ithil: Soo, would you ask to ask anything as well, maybe?
K: Hmm...
Ithil: Or..?
K: Ask something?
Ithil: Only if you want to!
K: Do you enjoy your research?
Ithil: Ah, yeah, it's definitely enjoyable.
K: Why you chose this topic to research?
Ithil: Ah, yeah, why; first because I am also interested in learning vocabulary and how
we do that, and secondly because I also like computer games and there is very little
research on computer games and incidental learning, or real learning happening there,
so I decided to try it and see what I find.
K: So, but you can choose another games not World of Warcraft, you can choose
Legend of Legends..
Ithil: Ah, League of Legends?
K: Ah yes League of Legends.
Ithil: It doesn't have so much text, you know, when you are playing League of Legends
you play with your friends and you tend to talk a lot but you don't read so much, but in
WoW you actually have to read more so that's why you have to read more.
70
K: No, I don't think so, I think maybe as 30 levels you want to...you may pay more
attention to..how say you level, or some information about champions so you may look
at their skills of the champion, so...
Ithil: Well it depends on the player - if they like to do the quests, or if they like to read it,
or if they are a new player like yourself, you were a new player so you had to check
carefully what to do where to go, but players who have been playing longer don't read
as much that's true...
K: Yeah.
Ithil: Ok, well you never know maybe in the future I can also research other games
where you have more communication... Of course, in WoW you can also have more
communication if you play with your friends, but you were playing alone, so yeah...
K: Yeah, so I don't want to play this game.
Ithil: Ye, it's a bit boring alone yeah, I agree I agree.
K: Maybe in China I play this because I have a lot of Chinese friends but...you know, in
Europe this game has a different service ..a different system I think.
Ithil: Ok well, thank you very much for your time and keep in touch!
K: Ok, I will, I hope you can keep in touch with me. Thank you have a nice evening.
Ithil: Bye, have a nice evening!
71